Hybrid nanocarriers for evaluating the toxicity of xenobiotics
Celescreen is developing a patented method for evaluating the toxicity of xenobiotics using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, a well-known model for medical research. The method uses a nanoparticle vector to facilitate the ingestion of xenobiotics by C. elegans. The team of Dr. Christian Serre at the Institut des Matériaux Poreux de Paris (IMAP, a joint Ecole Normale Supérieure-ESPCI research unit; http://www.chimie.ens.fr/?q=en/en-fre-imap-2000) has a renowned expertise in the synthesis of biocompatible metal-organic frameworks (MOF) for biomedical applications. NanoMOFs are non-toxic hybrid nanoparticles built up from metal subunits (e.g., Fe) coordinated with organic ligands (e.g., carboxylates) exhibiting ordered micro- or mesoporous architectures, associated to unprecedented drug loading capacities and controlled releases of a wide range of active drugs.
The mission: to develop and evaluate biocompatible metal-organic frameworks (MOF)-based compounds by playing on composition, structure, surface functionalization, conditions of use, so to improve the palatability of C. elegans, to control the release, and to put the process of synthesis under control.
Celescreen is based at Lariboisière Hospital (Paris). The project will be carried out in close collaboration with the IMAP (Paris).
The project is co-financed by Respore, the Ile-de-France network in porous solids sciences
Starting date : January or February 2019. Permanent position.
Contacts : Luc Lenglet (luc.lenglet@celcesreen.com), Christian Serre (christian.serre@ens.fr)