Research

Early and efficient detection of disease, methods of delivery for therapeutics, personalized medicine, stem cell therapy and easy ways of follow-ups can reduce the required drug doses for successful therapy and in turn reduction in related side effects. The focus of our lab is toward generating new biomaterials for

(i) making biosensors that can be used for the detection of the disease, including stage/severity of the disease

(ii) newer methods of delivering drug using 3D printed biomedical devices, hence reducing required drug doses, and

(iii) stem cell therapy to assist the therapeutic regimen, reducing the chances of resurrection.

Currently, we are targeting some of the important side effects of chemotherapy for interventions which also occur independently in different patients viz. hair loss, muscle weakening and oral health.

Our intended final products will be used for supporting the therapeutic regimens in cancer therapy. Biomaterials of our interest are carbon composites with amphiphiles which are being used to generate biosensors, 3D printable materials, biomedical devices, therapeutic bubbles and drug-delivery platforms.

Previously, we have been developing materials and their optimized applications for “Personalized biomedical devices”, “Biosensors” “Nanomedicine” and “Gene therapy carriers”. We have also worked on materials of different chemistries including lipids, polymers, carbon allotropes, polymer-carbon composites, carbon nanoparticles and used successfully in different model systems including bacteria, primary cells, human transformed cancer cells, cancer stem like cells, rats, mouse and onco-pigs. Some of the important products developed by us include “3D printed-drug eluting-bio absorbable biomedical device’ (Adv. Health Mater. 2016) “OcuCheck” (Sci Rep. 2015; PCT/US2016/025,507), “TenseSense” (Anal. Chem. 2017), “OjoGel” (Biosensor & Bioelectronics, 2018). Some of these devices are currently being developed through ‘Start-up company’ InnSight Tech. Inc., at Urbana, IL, USA. Additionally, we have developed many “multi-functional carbon nanoparticles” (JACS 2017, Sci Reports, 2015, 2016, 2017) and “soft-nano-assemblies” to be used for “intracellular drug quantification” (Nanoscale, 2016; Sci Rep, 2016; Small, 2016, 2015), ‘image guided therapy’ (Adv Func Mat, 2016; JACS, 2017; NanoResearch, 2017), ‘Bubble therapy’ (ACS nano, 2015), ‘cancer stem cell therapy’ (PNAS 2018, Nanoscale, 2015; Mol. Cancer Ther, 2018), ‘Venom therapy’ (Chem Commun. 2014; Plos ONE 2015, Mol Pharma. 2017) and “Gene Therapy” (JACS, 2011; Biomaterials, 2014).