Supervisor:
Co-Supervisor:
Dr. Peng Zhang, Professor & Graduate Coordinator, Department of Chemistry; Associate Professor in the School of Biomedical Engineering, Dalhousie University.
Program of Study:
MASc, Biomedical Engineering
Project Title:
Optimal Shape and Size of Gold Nanoparticles for Radiotherapy Dose Enhancement with a Diamond Linear Accelerator Target
Scholarships and/or Awards:
- CIHR Canada Graduate Scholarship – Master’s (CGS-M) 2023
Lay Research Summary:
Radiotherapy uses high doses of radiation from x-ray beams to kill cancer cells, but also damages healthy cells in the process. Current machines used produce high energy beams with only a small amount of low energy, while an experimental machine using a diamond target produces more low energy beams. Gold nanoparticles (1-100 nm wide) can enhance radiotherapy effects from inside cancer cells, by using the low beam energy to cause extra damage to nearby cancer cells without damaging healthy tissues further away. The nanoparticle shape and size affect their ability to get inside cancer cells. This project aims to produce gold nanoparticles with a range of defined sizes and shapes and test their performance with the new diamond beam, to determine which size and shape best enhances the cancer-killing effect of radiotherapy. This could improve the quality of life and remission rates of radiotherapy patients by lowering the radiation dose required for the same amount of cancer cell kill, thereby lowering the amount of toxic effects from radiation, and increasing the effectiveness of treatment in patients where the maximum safe radiation dose was not enough with radiation therapy without nanoparticles.
Location:
Dalhousie University