PPtBio

Polynuclear Platinum (II) Biomaterials for Antisense Therapeutic Application and Detection of Human Genetic Disease

Gene therapy is emerging as an effective personalised treatment with vast clinical application against cancer, cardiovascular, infectious, neurological, inflammatory, genetic, and many other human diseases. A key enabler of gene therapy is antisense drug discovery. Antisense therapeutics are biologic in nature and specifically target protein production at the transcriptional or translational level. The PPtBio research project will develop a breakthrough class of targeted antisense therapeutics and diagnostic hybridisation probes that address current limitations within oligonucleotide biomaterials.

The overarching aim of the PPtBio project is to develop new 21st century drugs for antisense gene therapy and diagnostics in human health. These proposed synthetic agents will be investigated for their targeted genetic potential and constitute an exciting, break-through, class of biomaterial with significant future development potential that will underpin competitiveness of industry and enterprise within Ireland.
PPtBio will also empower an innovative and enterprising economy by providing high-level training in biomaterials science, gene therapy, genetic disease detection, and molecular biology. Each of these training components will be directly influenced by the proposed industry-academia partnership with ATDBio Ltd., and will lead to future employment for project researchers in high-value cutting edge jobs within Ireland. Solving major national and global challenges in healthcare are key drivers in Ireland’s strategy for funding health-associated research.
The PPtBio project will add directly, and help shape the future healthcare of Ireland by developing smart materials that can detect disease at the genetic level and help treat specific disease classes using antisense therapy. Hence, PPtBio will contribute to effective personalised healthcare.