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Nanotechnology
It’s a small world
Nanotechnology makes less more than ever
Stephen Ekker has seen the
future, and it is small.
Smaller than your cells—
even smaller than some of the
structures within your cells.
Stephen Ekker is leading
the U’s effort to apply nanotechnology
to health care.
An associate professor in the
Department of Genetics, Cell
Biology, and Development, Ekker is
leading a University-wide effort to
use nanotechnology to prevent,
treat, and cure disease.
One of the fastest growing fields in
science today, nanotechnology is
the design and development of
minute devices—devices with
dimensions on the order of one
ten-thousandth of a millimeter—to
address human needs.
Applications range from improving
computer chips and solar energy
use to building better golf clubs.
Although nanotechnology has been
part of the world of physics for
some time, only recently has it
begun to build momentum in the
biological sciences.
Last year Ekker, who has a background
in both engineering and
biology, established a working
group that brings together dozens
of researchers in
an array of
departments—
from the College
of Biological
Sciences, Institute
of Technology,
College of
Pharmacy,
Medical School,
and Cancer Center—to collaboratively
apply their expertise to solving
biological problems using nanotechnology.
“Nationally, the field of nanobiotechnology
is exploding,” Ekker
says. “I only hope we can keep up
with the ever-expanding wave of
scientific possibilities.”
Drawing on the expertise of the
working group, Ekker has organized
a Minnesota Cancer
Nanotherapy Center. He proposes
eight projects to bring a variety of
nanotechnologies—seven of which
were developed at the University of
Minnesota—to bear on cancer diagnosis
and treatment. Proposed
projects include developing magnetic
nanoparticles to treat lung
and breast cancer; creating antitumor
antibody nanorings; developing
nanoengineered silicon-based
scaffolds for new cancer vaccines;
using silicon nanoparticles for cancer
imaging and treatment; using
nanoparticles to modify genes for
cancer therapy; using nano-sized
electrospray to treat lung cancer;
and evaluating the safety and toxicology
of the base nanomaterials
that underlie each core project.
Ekker says the University of
Minnesota is just the place for conducting
such research.
Close to 50 IT faculty
are already involved in
nanotechnology
research. The Cancer
Center, College of
Pharmacy, and
Medical School provide
a wealth of expertise
in linking basic science
with clinical application. And the
clustering of Academic Health
Center, biological sciences, and
engineering facilities along
Washington Avenue creates unparalleled
opportunity for interaction.
“This kind of interdisciplinary science
is our future,” he says. “The
University of Minnesota is one of
few places in the world that can do
it at one major location.”
Although there are some institutional
barriers yet to overcome,
Ekker thinks it’s well worth the
effort. “If we really put the right
people together, an interdisciplinary
approach should be able to
solve problems that have been
very difficult to tackle in the past,”
he says.
—Mary Hoff
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