Macrophages co-loaded with drug-associated and superparamagnetic nanoparticles for triggered drug release by alternating magnetic fields.

Two features of macrophages make them attractive for targeted transport of drugs: they efficiently take up a broad spectrum of nanoparticles (NPs) and, by sensing cytokine gradients, they are attracted to the sites of infection and inflammation. To expand the potential of macrophages as drug carriers, we investigated whether macrophages could be simultaneously coloaded with different types of nanoparticles, thus equipping individual cells with different functionalities. We used superparamagnetic iron oxide NPs (SPIONs), which produce apoptosis-inducing hyperthermia when exposed to an alternating magnetic field (AMF), and co-loaded them on macrophages together with drug-containing NPs (inorganic-organic nanoparticles (IOH-NPs) or mesoporous silica NPs (MSNs)).

Ultrasound-triggered drug release in vivo from antibubble-loaded macrophages.

Nanoparticles have proven to be attractive carriers in therapeutic drug delivery since they can encapsulate, protect and stabilize a plethora of different drugs, thereby improving therapeutic efficacy and reducing side effects. However, specific targeting of drug-loaded nanoparticles to the tissue of interest and a timely and spatially controlled release of drugs on demand still represent a challenge. Recently, gas-filled microparticles, so-called antibubbles, have been developed which can efficiently encapsulate liquid drug droplets.

A generic cell-based biosensor converts bacterial infection signals into chemoattractants for immune cells.

Bacterial infection is a major challenge to human health. Although various potent antibiotics have emerged in recent decades, current challenges arise from the increasing number of multi-drug-resistant species. Infections associated with implants represent a particular challenge because they are usually diagnosed at an advanced stage and are difficult to treat with antibiotics owing to the formation of protective biofilms.

Interactive Design-of-Experiments: Optimizing a Cooling System.

The optimization of cooling systems is important in many cases, for example for cabin and battery cooling in electric cars. Such an optimization is governed by multiple, conflicting objectives and it is performed across a multi-dimensional parameter space. The extent of the parameter space, the complexity of the non-linear model of the system, as well as the time needed per simulation run and factors that are not modeled in the simulation necessitate an iterative, semi-automatic approach.

Stable Expression by Lentiviral Transduction of Cells.

Lentiviral gene transfer represents a versatile and powerful method for genetic transduction of many cell lines and primary cells including "hard-to-transfect" cells. As a consequence of the integration of the recombinant lentiviral vector into the cellular genome, the transgene is stably maintained, and long-term producing cells are established. Here, we describe the current state of the art and give details for lab-scale production of lentiviral vectors as well as for infection and titration of the viral vectors.