Bootcamps Organized

Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles (NANPs) and DNA-templated Silver Nanoclusters (AgNCs) for Therapeutic Application — From Design to Delivery | Sao Paulo, Brazil | October 19th, 2024

Congratulations to the 9 Ph.D. students from around the world who attended our 4-hour workshop after the Nucleic Acids and Nanobiosystems in Cancer Theranostics (NANCT) conference! This workshop, offered by the Afonin Lab, was led by Ph.D. student Laura Rebolledo where she showcased our lab's work on using the programmable nature of nucleic acids to develop cutting-edge therapeutic platforms, focusing on Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles (NANPs) and DNA-templated Silver Nanoclusters (AgNCs) for personalized drug delivery and infection treatment. The workshop blended theory with hands-on experience, guiding participants through the experimental steps behind our innovative designs.

Antimicrobial DNA-stablized Fluorescent Silver Nanoclusters

(October 7, 2024)

Congratulations to the talented students from South Mecklenburg High School for successfully completing the AgNCs training! Led by Mrs. Sarmistha Ghosh, 13 AP Biology students participated in a one-day workshop in the Afonin Lab at UNC Charlotte, where our Ph.D. candidate, Elizabeth Skelly, guided them through the Silver Nanoclusters (AgNCs) production and characterization. We're thrilled to announce that all students successfully assembled their AgNCs—a fantastic achievement!

Isolation and use of peripheral blood mononuclear cells for the investigation of the immune response to nucleic acid nanoparticles and their carriers

(July 31- August 18, 2023)

Ph.D. Candidate Yelixza Avila spent three weeks at the Nanotechnology Characterization Lab to be trained by Drs. Dobrovolskaia and Newton on techniques used to investigate cytokine production im response to our NANPs in peripheral blood mononuclear cells PBMCs).

Nanosystem Solutions for Precision Oncology
(June 12-16, 2023)

Congratulations to the participants who successfully completed our week-long workshop on how our nucleic acid platforms can be applied to aid in the development of more precise cancer therapeutics. A special thanks to our presenter, Dr. Roger Chammas, MD-Ph.D. (Professor and chair of oncology at the Institute of Cancer of São Paulo), for visiting the Afonin Lab and sharing his valuable time and expertise!

Testing Antibacterial Properties of AgNCs and AgNPs

(Summer 2021, 2022, and 2023)

Many STEM students graduate without any actual hands-on research experience, due to the high numbers of students and a relatively low number of research-active faculty (and of course COVID-19 made it even worse). A lack of experience can additionally downgrade the competitiveness of graduates and reduce their chances to successfully pursue academic careers, thus indirectly affecting the development of the research field of RNA nanotechnology. To address this deficiency, as a part of ouRNAno initiative, the Afonin lab implemented a
week-long summer boot camp that introduces students to the emerging field of therapeutic nanotechnology and gives them basic research experience.