3/15/06 Contact: Sara Borchik, 334/844-5284 (borchse@auburn.edu)
David Granger, 334/844-9999 (grangdm@auburn.edu)

AUBURN UNIVERSITY’S GUPTA LOOKS AT MEDICAL FRONTIERS OF NANOPARTICLES

AUBURN - Ram Gupta, an alumni professor in chemical engineering at Auburn University, is the editor of “Nanoparticle Technology for Drug Delivery,” a text designed to present practical issues concerning the manufacture and biological application of nanoparticles. Published in January, it is his first text.

Nanoparticles are tiny particles at the forefront of medical technology, making them of increasing interest to the pharmaceutical community. With last year’s approval of the USDA’s first nanomedicine, a breast cancer treatment called Abraxane, a greater importance has been placed on research in this field.

"These days there is a lot of excitement about nanomedicine, as it is poised to improve human health significantly,” Gupta said. “This book will be of interest to professionals involved in all aspects of nanomedicine and could also be used as a textbook in courses that focus on the subject.”

Nanoparticles can increase drug solubility, enhance availability to the body, allow tissue targeting and reduce drug side-effects. The book discusses all four aspects of nanomedicine: production techniques, quality control, medical usage and ethical and regulatory issues. Nineteen researchers from the United States, Germany, India, the Netherlands and Russia contributed information to the work.

“This book encompasses at least three years of research by myself and the others who contributed,” Gupta said. “The work we’ve done here will continue to bring recognition to Auburn as we dive deeper into the nanomedicine field.”

Auburn University is a preeminent land-grant and comprehensive research institution with more than 23,000 students and 6,500 faculty and staff. Ranked among the top 50 public universities nationally, Auburn is Alabama’s largest educational institution, offering more than 230 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree programs.

(Contributed by Sara Borchik.)

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