About NSDB
This confocal laser scanning microscopy image shows kidney cancer cells (cell nuclei in blue, cell skeleton in green) labeled by phosphorylcholine-coated semiconducting polymer nanoparticles (red). The phosphorylcholine coating allows very efficient and rapid endocytosis into the cell (about 30 minutes) while the semiconducting polymer allows durable and long-lasting fluorescence to measure multiple biological processes unique to cancer cell sub-types. Cells labeled with this nanoparticle can be imaged in vivo, with only a 35 percent decrease in fluorescence intensity after 12 days.
The Nanodelivery Systems and Devices Branch (NSDB) of the Cancer Imaging Program (CIP) is within the Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis (DCTD) at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). NSDB develops and implements programs with and for the extramural research community related to the use of nanotechnology in medicine and cancer.
The NSDB leadership is staffed by a team of individuals whose collective backgrounds and expertise cover the broad multidisciplinary nature of cancer nanotechnology.
Mission
The mission of the Nanodelivery Systems and Devices Branch is to strategically develop, fund, and administer initiatives aimed at solving modern oncology problems with nanotechnology solutions.
The overarching goal of these initiatives is to discover and develop innovative nanotechnologies for application(s), ranging from discovery through to clinical translation phases, for the delivery of innovative clinically relevant technologies aimed at cancer prevention, diagnosis, control, and treatment.
These initiatives include a programmatic effort known, collectively, as the NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer, which aligns to several key areas of the National Cancer Institute’s existing priority areas.