One may wonder how nanoscience, the study of objects and phenomena on the nanoscale, relates to the medical field. The answer is simple: By observing the very building blocks of life on the nanoscale, Anna-Karin Gustavsson’s research provides a crucial understanding of our anatomy at the cellular — and even subcellular — level.
“There is a lot of untapped potential,” said Gustavsson, an assistant professor of chemistry who is working to “tap” into the potential within the field of nanoscience. As a nanoscience researcher and director of Rice’s Center for Nanoscale Imaging Sciences, Gustavsson specializes in imaging and tracking at the single-molecule level, with a focus on biological and medical applications.
Applying nanoscience techniques to the imaging of human cells has helped her better understand what makes a cell function properly. By gaining insight into normal cellular function, Gustavsson hopes to understand the intricacies of what then makes a cell dysfunctional, paving the way for better treatments of various diseases.
Gustavsson’s work builds on Rice’s history of groundbreaking nanoscience research. The 1985 discovery of C60 sparked a revolution in the nanoscience field and led to the creation of the Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology in 1993. “Buckyballs,” as C60 molecules are often called, have shown promise as drug delivery vehicles due to their hollow structure. However, they are not the only examples of how nanoscience technologies can impact the medical field.
For instance, graduate students Gabriella Gagliano and Nahima Saliba have been working with Gustavsson to build a new super-resolution microscopy platform. This development, they explain, is “a platform which improves super-resolution imaging in notoriously difficult sample types,” such as thick mammalian cells and stem cell aggregates. Their imaging approach will allow scientists to learn in-depth how certain treatments can affect diseased cells.
One disease of particular interest to Gustavsson is progeria, a rare genetic disorder that causes rapid aging and limits life expectancy to just 14 years. Progeria occurs because of a DNA mutation that creates a faulty protein called progerin. Gagliano and Saliba use super-resolution imaging techniques to observe how progerin interacts with the rest of the cell to learn more about the disease and observe how potential progeria treatments would affect individuals with progeria on the cellular level. This research aims to identify the most effective approaches to treat the disease. Other researchers in Gustavsson’s lab use similar imaging techniques to explore both the behavior of endothelial cells and how damaged DNA in cancer cells responds to radiation therapy.
To support this important type of research, Rice recently established the Center for Nanoscale Imaging Sciences, which focuses on cultivating collaboration between researchers to further advance the field of nanoscale imaging and its applications.
“Even though so much is known [about nanoscience],” Gustavsson said, “still so much is unknown.” This sense of possibility drives her and other Rice researchers to continue pushing boundaries as they develop new nanoscience breakthroughs.
-Sophia Straus ’28