NANO CARRIER - Porous Silicon Nano particles will be produced and studied, in vitro and in vivo for cancer diagnostics, therapy and imaging.

Background: Nacamed has a patented efficient production process for Silicon nanoparticles. These particles can transport active drug ingredients targeted within the body, or function as a depot for an active drug at a specific location within the body. This kind of particles are called drug carriers and can be compared to a vehicle transporting and delivering a drug to the right place in the body at the right time. For a drug to give optimal effect, it is crucial that the active ingredient reaches the cells or tissues that needs treatment. Normally, the active ingredient will passively follow the blood stream, and only a fraction of the drug reaches the target cells. The rest of the drug is broken down and excreted from the body without having impact on the deceased cells. On the other side, drug impacting healthy cells can often cause side effects. This is particularly a problem in cancer treatment, where the treatment often gives serious side effects when the drug impacts healthy cells. Earlier research indicates that Silicon nano particles are suitable drug carriers. These particles can carry large volumes of active ingredients, and no adverse effects caused by this drug carrier are yet found neither on the patient nor on the environment. Silicon particles are totally destructed and excreted from the body when the task is fulfilled. Nacamed focuses on the use of Silicon particles as drug carriers both inside and outside the body, as well as for diagnostic purposes. In time, it can be of interest to use Silicon particles for many different causes. Nacamed can now, through the research completed by Dynatec AS, supply particles where previous production challenges have been solved. Project status: In the project period it has been a priority to test the particles against traditionally used particles of Silicon. Despite that the particles are of the same material, different traits has been observed. It has been necessary to produce different batches to achieve particles best suited for the studies. Through this, Nacamed has gained experience and has learned how to achieve different sizes and traits based on different production parameters. Nacamed has in this phase also achieved to produce smaller particles that earlier, in addition to particles with integrated pores. During the project period, Nacamed has set up all production in Norway, and is now testing for upscaling and process improvements. Nacamed now plans to further develop the particles. This involves both working with the surface of the particles, as well as seeing how different drugs can be loaded into the pores of the particles. There are today many pharmaceutical companies looking for drug carriers for different purposes, both for use in and outside of the body. Nacamed are presently looking for cooperation partners with specific wishes for drug carriers, for which Nacamed can target the research towards.

Silisium nanopartikler har gjennom orskning i 25 år vist seg å ha lovende egenskaper som legemiddelbærere. Produksjonen av partiklene har imidlertid vært ressurskrevende og gitt lite produksjonsutbytte. Med Nacameds patenterte produksjonsmetode basert på cCVD, kan silisium nanopartikleer gjøres kommersielt tilgjengelig for farmasøytiske formål. Prosjektet viste at partikler produsert med cCVD-teknologi har tilsvarende egenskaper som partikler produsert på tradisjonell metode. Metoden gir dessuten en svært smal størrelsesfordeling og en høy renhet på partiklene. Partiklene vil derfor egne seg godt som utgangspunkt for å utvikle en legemiddelbærer med ønskede egenskaper.

The project seeks to develop the first industrial scale production process of porous silicon nanoparticles (PSi NPs) for use as drug carriers in pharmaceutical products. The chosen area of scope in this stage is Nacamed PSi NPs as an anticancer drug delivery system (DDS), although a variety of applications can be of future interest. Production and functionalization methods of the material will be optimized and developed. Nacamed PSi DDS will be studied, in vitro and in vivo for cancer diagnostics, therapy and imaging. The patented technology of Dynatec Engineering will be used in the production of PSi NPs. Results from a previous project have suggested that the centrifugal reactor of Dynatec Engineering can efficiently be used to produce homogeneous small particles and nanostructures suitable for this purpose. Nacamed has acquired a lifetime right from Dynatec Engineering, allowing Nacamed to use the patented DYNATEC reactor technology to produce customized nanoparticles and structures for use in nanomedicine. The new elements in this project are increased knowledge of geometry, size and size distribution of PSi NPs, and verification of the possible use as a drug carrier in pharmaceutical applications. For this purpose, both in vitro and in vivo tests of PSi NPs are major parts of the project. Our target is the production and sales of our material to pharmaceutical industry worldwide. The research on PSi materials for pharmaceutical applications has expanded greatly since the early studies of Leigh Canham more than 25 years ago. PSi have emerged as promising multifunctional and versatile platforms for nanomedicine in drug delivery, diagnostics and therapy 1.There is a significant potential for value creation in Norway. Our revenues are expected to grow from 614 million NOK in year 1 after product registration to 9.8 billion NOK in year 5.