Cancer Specific and Organ-Avoiding RNA Architectures for Quantitative Imaging

The goal of the project is to adopt an innovative RNA nanotechnology approach to construct ultrastable multifunctional RNA Beacons and RNA Dendrimers as image-guided agents for quantitative real-time assessment of tumor and metastatic cancer targeted therapeutic delivery, distribution, uptake and response. Dr. Evers’s lab has extensive experience in gastrointestinal cancer and colorectal cancer studies. His lab will assist in establishing colorectal cancer metastasis mouse models for the proposed in vivo studies. His lab will also provide the expertise for the in vivo evaluation of the constructed RNA nanoparticles for their biodistribution, as well as in vivo imaging.