Research Information
Research Interests
- Molecular imaging for identification of tumor margins
- Gold nanoparticles for imaging and drug delivery
- Quenched activity-based optical imaging probes
- Imaging complex molecular signatures
- Targeted Photo Dynamic Therapy (PDT)
Molecular imaging, defined as the in vivo characterization of biological processes at the cellular and molecular level, is an attempt to image the molecular makeup of the macrofeatures currently visualized using "classical" diagnostic imaging techniques. Classically, detection of malignant tumor cells in a background of normal or hyperplastic benign tissue is often based on differences in physical properties between tissues, which are frequently minimal, resulting in low contrast resolution.
Research Projects
Our laboratory concentrates on research related to the development and application of Molecular Imaging technologies, with specific focus on designing novel tools to image individual and multiple molecular markers of disease thereby increasing the sensitivity and specificity of medical imaging. We are also developing new uses of molecular imaging to define tumor margins during surgery and as theranostic tools to identify cancer for conventional surgical removal followed by PDT ablation of tissue not amenable to surgery.
Awards and Honors
Professional Memberships
External Appointments
Publications
Luo D, Wang X, Zeng S, Ramamurthy G, Burda C, Basilion JP. “Targeted Gold Nanocluster-Enhanced Radiotherapy of Prostate Cancer.” Small. 2019 Aug;15(34):e1900968. doi: 10.1002/smll.201900968. Epub 2019 Jul 2. PMID: 31265213.
Luo D, Wang X, Zeng S, Ramamurthy G, Burda C, and Basilion JP. “Prostate-specific membrane antigen targeted gold nanoparticles for prostate cancer radiotherapy: Does size matter?”. 2019. Chemical Science, 2019, 10, 8119 – 8128
Wang X, Ramamurthy G, Shirke AA, Walker E, Mangadlao J, Wang Z, Wang Y, Shan L, Schluchter MD, Dong Z, Brady-Kalnay SM, Walker NK, Gargesha M, MacLennan G, Luo D, Sun R, Scott B, Roy D, Li J, Basilion JP. Photodynamic Therapy is an Effective Adjuvant Therapy for Image-Guided Surgery in Prostate Cancer. Cancer Res. 2020 Nov 12. pii: canres.0201.2019. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-19-0201. [Epub ahead of print]. PMID: 31719100
Walker E, Liu Y, Kim I, Biro M, Iyer SR, Ezaldein H, Scott J, Merati M, Mistur R, Zhou B, Straight B, Yim JJ, Bogyo M, Mann M, Wilson DL, Basilion JP, Popkin DL. A Protease-Activated Fluorescent Probe Allows Rapid Visualization of Keratinocyte Carcinoma During Excision. Cancer Res. 2020 Mar 4. pii: canres.3067.2019. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-19-3067. [Epub ahead of print] PMID:32132111
Perera RH, de Leon A, Wang X, Wang Y, Ramamurthy G, Peiris P, Abenojar E, Basilion JP, Exner AA. Real time ultrasound molecular imaging of prostate cancer with PSMA-targeted nanobubbles. Nanomedicine. 2020 Apr 26;28:102213. doi:10.1016/j.nano.2020.102213. Online ahead of print.PMID: 32348874
Luo D, Johnson A, Wang X, Li H, Erokwu BO, Springer S, Lou J, Ramamurthy G, Flask CA, Burda C, Meade TJ, Basilion JP. Targeted Radiosensitizers for MR-Guided Radiation Therapy of Prostate Cancer. Nano Letters. 2020. PMID 32845644 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.0c02487
Dong Luo, Xinning Wang, Ethan Walker, Jing Wang, Sarah Springer, Jason Lou, Gopalakrishnan Ramamurthy, Clemens Burda, James P Basilion. Nanoparticles Yield Increased Drug Uptake and Therapeutic Efficacy upon Sequential Near-Infrared Irradiation. ACS Nano. 2020 Nov 24;14(11):15193-15203. doi: 10.1021/acsnano.0c05425. Epub 2020 Oct 22.
Wang X, Shirke A, Walker E, Sun R, Ramamurthy G, Wang J, Shan L, Mangadlao J, Dong Z, Li J, Wang Z, Schluchter M, Luo D, Wang Y, Stauffer S, Brady-Kalnay S, Hoimes C, Lee Z, Basilion JP. Small Molecule-Based Prodrug Targeting Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen for the Treatment of Prostate Cancer. Cancers (Basel). 2021 Jan 22;13(3):417. doi: 10.3390/cancers13030417.PMID: 33499427