Tania Betancourt, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, is the winner of one of two grand prizes for Best Paper award in the Nano-Night 2005.
Tania Betancourt, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, is the winner of one of two grand prizes for Best Paper award in the Nano-Night 2005. Nano-Night is a very popular scientific forum featuring the research of current graduate students in the field of nanotechnology and organized annually by the Center of Nano- and Molecular Science and Technology of the University of Texas at Austin. Tania's research paper entitled "Biodegradable Nanoparticles for the Treatment of Cancer" was carried out under the direction of her PhD advisor, Professor Lisa Brannon-Peppas.
Betancourt's research has led to the development of biodegradable nanoparticles with conjugated targeting moieties. By releasing the chemotherapeutic agent over time, the concentration of this agent is more easily maintained within the therapeutic window for extended periods. Also by targeting the nanoparticles carrying the chemotherapeutic agent to cancer cells, the toxicity that is traditionally induced in other tissues of the body can be significantly reduced.
The only engineer to receive this grand prize this year, Tania is a resident of Houston, TX and did her BS degree in chemical engineering at Texas A&M University. She joined the Biomedical Engineering Department in August 2003 and is presently a National Science Foundation Fellow of the IGERT Program on Cellular and Molecular Imaging for Diagnostics and Therapeutics.
