{"677366":{"#nid":"677366","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Unlocking the Brain: Using Microbubbles and Ultrasound for Drug Delivery","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe brain is a stronghold, the central command center for the body, protected by the blood-brain barrier (BBB). This network of blood vessels and tissues acts as a biological gatekeeper, a selective filter that prevents harmful substances in the bloodstream from entering the brain\u2019s complex ecosystem.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s protection that comes at a cost. While the BBB lets some things in \u2014 like water, oxygen, general anesthetics made of very small molecules \u2014 it also prevents many vital therapeutics from reaching the brain, limiting the treatment options for neurological problems.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut a multinational team of researchers led by Georgia Tech biomedical engineer\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/research.gatech.edu\/people\/costas-arvanitis\u0022\u003ECostas Arvanitis\u003C\/a\u003E is tackling the challenge with a technique that combines microbubbles \u2014 tiny gas-filled spheres \u2014 and ultrasound technology. Their innovative approach aims to temporarily open the BBB, allowing drugs or immune cells in to take on the fight against disease, offering therapeutic hope for patients battling conditions like brain cancer or Alzheimer\u2019s disease.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe found that microbubble-enhanced ultrasound, an emerging technology that offers a noninvasive way to temporarily open the blood-brain barrier, allows blood-borne therapeutics to reach the brain,\u201d said Arvanitis, associate professor in the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/bme.gatech.edu\/bme\/\u0022\u003EWallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering\u003C\/a\u003E and the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.me.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EGeorge W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe technique can potentially be fine-tuned to establish windows of opportunity to target brain diseases, he added. Costas and his collaborators\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41467-024-52329-y\u0022\u003Edescribe their work in a recent edition of \u003Cem\u003ENature Communications\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch4\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBouncing Bubbles\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h4\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMicrobubbles, smaller than the diameter of human hair, have shells made of a lipid or protein. In healthcare, they\u2019re often used to help enhance visibility in ultrasound, acting as contrast agents, illuminating details inside the body.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EUltrasound uses high-frequency sound waves to create images. When microbubbles are exposed to focused ultrasound waves, they rapidly expand and contract. This gentle mechanical force shakes the protective barrier surrounding the brain, creating small openings for aid to pass through.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cDespite their simple structure, microbubbles have complex behaviors,\u201d Arvanitis said. \u201cThey can resonate at specific frequencies, allowing us to manipulate their oscillations to enhance permeability at the blood-brain barrier. And their behavior also depends on their size and shell composition.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor instance, microbubbles with elastic shells are more effective in increasing the permeability of the BBB. In their research, Arvanitis and his collaborators noted a 12-fold increase in drug delivery effectiveness using elastic-shelled (lipid-based) microbubbles.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch4\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMath Before Mice\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h4\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe researchers conducted studies using mice but began with a mathematical model to simulate microbubble dynamics in brain vessels. They identified a resonant frequency that enhances microbubble movement and explored the correlation between frequency, bubble dynamics, and inflammatory responses in the brain.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETheir model and later experiments showed that specific ultrasound frequencies can enhance immune cell movement and increase drug accumulation in brain tumors. They also found that higher ultrasound frequencies, while effective in opening the BBB, were also accompanied by increased expression of inflammatory markers on the endothelia cells of the BBB \u2014 an important finding, as excessive inflammation can lead to further complications in patients with neurological disorders.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022By understanding and controlling the frequency dynamics of microbubbles, we can create a system that maximizes drug delivery efficacy,\u201d Arvanitis said. \u201cOur findings suggest that using lower frequencies may be beneficial for delivering therapeutics while reducing inflammation, which can be crucial for treating neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer\u0027s and Parkinson\u0027s.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe research has implications that could extend beyond drug delivery, paving the way for new diagnostic techniques. Using ultrasound to open the BBB could allow clinicians to gather important information directly from the brain, improving diagnostic techniques, like ultrasound-enhanced biopsies.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe scientific principles established by our work not only enhance our ability to develop safer and more effective treatments for brain diseases, but also lays the groundwork for innovative diagnostic and therapeutic strategies within and beyond the brain,\u201d said Arvanitis, whose team included graduate students from his lab as well as researchers from the University of California (San Francisco), Stanford, and the University of Edinburgh.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHe added, \u201cThe dynamics of microbubbles interacting with blood vessels could have important implications in other areas of medicine that we haven\u2019t yet explored.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECITATION:\u003C\/strong\u003E Yutong Guo, Hohyun Lee, Chulyong Kim, Christian Park, Akane Yamamichi, Pavlina Chuntova, Marco Gallus, Miguel Bernabeu, Hideho Okada, Hanjoong Jo, Costas Arvanitis.\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41467-024-52329-y\u0022\u003E\u201cUltrasound frequency-controlled microbubble dynamics in brain vessels regulate the enrichment of inflammatory pathways in the blood-brain barrier.\u201d\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cem\u003E Nature Communications \u0026nbsp;doi.org\/10.1038\/s41467-024-52329-y\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EFUNDING:\u003C\/strong\u003E This study was supported by NIH grants R37 CA239039, R01CA273878, R35NS105068, HL119798, HL139757, HL151358, and T32HL166146. This study was also supported by the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Ians Friends Foundation, and the German Research Foundation, and the Leducq Foundation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EResearchers led by Costas Arvanitis at Georgia Tech have developed a method using microbubbles and ultrasound to temporarily open the blood-brain barrier (BBB), enhancing drug delivery to the brain. This breakthrough could improve treatments for brain cancer, Alzheimer\u0027s, and more, by safely targeting the BBB.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Researchers led by Costas Arvanitis at Georgia Tech have developed a method using microbubbles and ultrasound to temporarily open the blood-brain barrier (BBB), enhancing drug delivery to the brain"}],"uid":"28153","created_gmt":"2024-10-08 13:50:22","changed_gmt":"2024-10-23 14:36:57","author":"Jerry Grillo","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2024-10-08T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2024-10-08T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"675241":{"id":"675241","type":"image","title":"Costas Arvanitis","body":"\u003Cp\u003ECostas Arvanitis is developing a method using microbubbles and ultrasound to breach the blood-brain barrier. \u2014 Photo by Jerry Grillo\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1728395115","gmt_created":"2024-10-08 13:45:15","changed":"1728395197","gmt_changed":"2024-10-08 13:46:37","alt":"Costas Arvanitis BME researcher","file":{"fid":"258843","name":"Costas Lab.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/10\/08\/Costas%20Lab.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/10\/08\/Costas%20Lab.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":7213847,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/10\/08\/Costas%20Lab.jpg?itok=Jo_fxvYz"}}},"media_ids":["675241"],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"},{"id":"1292","name":"Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience (IBB)"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"}],"categories":[{"id":"138","name":"Biotechnology, Health, Bioengineering, Genetics"}],"keywords":[{"id":"193999","name":"microbubbles"},{"id":"7677","name":"ultrasound"},{"id":"7615","name":"ultrasound drug delivery pharmaceutical therapy"},{"id":"178946","name":"blood-brain barrier"},{"id":"187423","name":"go-bio"},{"id":"172970","name":"go-neuro"},{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"}],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71891","name":"Health and Medicine"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}