Posted: Dec 08, 2014 |
NanoENO proof-of-concept project develops nanoscale imaging agent
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(Nanowerk News) CEA-Leti and CLARA today announced the development of a new fluorescence-imaging agent that could significantly increase surgeons’ accuracy when removing cancerous tumors.
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LipImage™ 815 was developed in the NanoENO project, which focused on producing a nano-scale contrast agent in the near infrared range for the resection of soft-tissue sarcomas, guided by imaging. This imaging agent is based on encapsulation of a fluorophore in Lipidots™. Lipidots™, Leti’s patented lipid nanovectors, are versatile nano-delivery platforms based on microscopic droplets of oil for encapsulating and carrying drugs or fluorescent imaging agents to targeted cells in the body for treatment or diagnosis.
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The NanoENO project was coordinated by Leti and facilitated by the cancer-research cluster, Cancéropôle Lyon Auvergne Rhône-Alpes (CLARA), which fosters high-potential partnerships between academic, clinical and industrial organizations and companies from the Rhône-Alpes and Auvergne regions under its Proof of Concept program and industrial transfers.
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During the project, preclinical validations were made on nine cases of resection of spontaneous soft-tissue sarcomas in pet-owners’ dogs, guided by fluorescence imaging after clinical scanner diagnosis. The clinical use onfirmed the fluorescence of soft-tissue sarcomas, and helped surgeons visualize the tumoral extension to reach adequate surgical margins.
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The project included the nuclear medicine department at the Hospital d'Orsay, the Veterinary School of Lyon (VetAgro Sup) and Advanced Accelerator Applications (AAA), a European pharmaceutical group spun out of CERN, in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2002 to develop innovative diagnostic and therapeutic products.
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The contrast agent, developed in the NanoENO project, can be upgraded by grafting radio elements onto its surfaces to combine nuclear imaging for diagnostic purposes with intraoperative fluorescence imaging, into a single bimodal contrast agent.
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“The NanoENO team clearly demonstrated that LipImage™ 815 is a very promising fluorescence-imaging agent for improving both diagnosis of disease and guiding surgeons during tumor removal,” said Patrick Boisseau, head of Leti’s nanomedicine program and chairman of the European Technology Platform – Nanomedicine (ETPN).
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“This surgical application also shows the versatility of Leti’s Lipidots™ technology, which is already being adapted for medical diagnosis and cosmetics purposes by Leti partners.”
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“For nearly 11 years, Cancéropôle CLARA has actively supported leading-edge clinical oncology research that capitalizes on the regions’ rich technological and medical expertise, and we have fostered transfer of the results to industry through our system of public-private partnerships,” said Dr. Amaury Martin, secretary general of CLARA. “The NanoENO project success strongly validates the mission of CLARA’s Proof of Concept program.”
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The €700,000 project included funding from FEDER Rhône-Alpes and Région Rhône-Alpes, the European Fund for Economic and Regional Development and Advanced Accelerator Applications (AAA).
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