Development nanoparticle-based techniques to monitor differentiating neural stem cells after transplantation

There is much excitement about the possibility of using stem cells to replace diseased, damaged or even underdeveloped tissues. However, before such therapies can be devised, we need to be able to follow what happens when stem cells (or the cells they develop into) are transplanted into the body. Our project intends to make use of another recent scientific development, using nanotechnology to be able to follow the development of stem cells. To do this, we will modify the chemistry of metallic nanoparticles (which have diameters of less than ten thousandth of a millimeter) so that they are taken up by stem cells. By observing the localisation of these particles we can in turn locate the stem cells which took them up, even though those stem cells may have already developed into different types of cell.