Particles in the nanoscale, typically 1-100 nanometres in size, are when exposed to human whole blood immediately adsorbed to by plasma proteins, which builds up the “protein corona”. The composition of proteins in the corona is dependent on the particle’s physicochemical characteristics, size, and shape. The corona will, in turn, influence how the particle is recognized, responded to, and eliminated by the host innate immune system. This sequence of events determines how nanoparticles in drug delivery systems will interact with the human body when infused into the vascular system.

In this project, we aim to:

1. Characterize how the physicochemical and morphological properties of nanoparticles determine the protein corona composition in different whole blood models.
2. Understand and modulate the thromboinflammatory response to nanoparticles in human whole blood by varying particle properties.
3. Understand how nanoparticles interact with the human endothelial cells for specific nanoparticle extravasation at particular sites.