Anthony Fiore
Pronouns: He/Him
Research Mentor(s): Raoul Kopelman
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Chemistry / LSA
Program: UROP
Session: Session 4 (1:40pm – 2:30pm)
Authors: Raoul Kopelman, Jeff Folz
Abstract
It can be difficult to decide the optimal treatment for cancer without information on the properties of the tumor microenvironment. Certain treatments can be made ineffective by different conditions of the tumor microenvironment. For example, low oxygen levels suppress all forms of radiotherapy, low pH levels suppress the effect of chemotherapy drugs, and low potassium levels can suppress cancer immunotherapy. Fluorescent dyes can be used to give an optical signal detailing these properties. However, fluorescence cannot be used in a tumor. This project incorporates a quenching dye (BHQ-2) into photoacoustic contrast nano agents in order to allow the use of a greater variety of dyes. The quenching dye converts light emitted from a fluorescent dye into an acoustic signal which can be measured with ultrasound. With this addition, photoacoustic measurements can be done with solid tumors in vivo. This is to provide more options for less cost when utilizing photoacoustic imaging for cancer diagnosis. We have successfully converted fluorescent dye into a photoacoustic probe by attaching the fluorescent and quenching dye to a polyacrylamide nanoparticle. Having succeeded, we have successfully converted a calcium-sensing fluorescent dye into a photoacoustic signal so we can establish a calibration curve and determine the calcium concentration quantitatively. We can then generate functional images of the calcium microenvironment.
