PhD defence

Rare-earth nanoparticles in bioimaging and therapy

• Z. Yu

Date

Wednesday 5 July 2023

Time

13:45 - 14:30

Location

Academy Building
Rapenburg 73
2311 GJ Leiden

Supervisor(s)

• Prof⁠.dr⁠. M⁠.A⁠. van Buchem
• Prof. dr.ir. M Staring
• dr. C. Eich

Summary

In recent decades, the excellent properties of rare-earth doped nanoparticles (RENPs), such as multiple optical properties, high photostability, long lifetime, and low cytotoxicity, have made them one of the main research trends for optical probes. Their promising applications in the biomedical field have further contributed to this trend.

This thesis focuses on two aspects of RENPs as biological carriers and multifunctional imaging probes for disease therapy and diagnosis. Firstly, we investigated the effectiveness of a nanoplatform constructed with upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) as a carrier for immunotherapy due to the modifiability and high luminescence efficiency of UCNPs. This approach successfully achieved an immunotherapeutic strategy that could be tracked in real time.

Secondly, as single imaging modality probes are time-consuming and have low diagnostic efficiency in disease diagnosis, we synthesized and optimized RENPs with multifunctional imaging capabilities using specific ions in their compositions, and we also performed preliminary evaluations of various imaging properties. Our findings provide a viable idea for reducing healthcare costs and improving healthcare efficiency.

PhD dissertations

Approximately one week after the defence, PhD dissertations by Leiden PhD students are available digitally through the Leiden Repository, that offers free access to these PhD dissertations. Please note that in some cases a dissertation may be under embargo temporarily and access to its full-text version will only be granted later.

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