Designing the Properties of Smart Polymeric Materials for the Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Disease

Nathan R. B. Boase, PhD
Queensland University of Technology
Brisbane, Australia

Abstract: Polymers, plastics, and composite materials are highly desirable for future technologies, owing to their highly functional molecular design, lightweight, and precisely tuneable properties. My research group looks at using controlled synthetic techniques, to design organic probes and polymers with specific physicochemical properties, to enable smart functionality, typically to address challenges in healthcare. In this presentation, I will give an overview of recent projects looking at the interaction of organic materials and radiant energy; from UV in sunlight to high energy X-ray radiation. The radiant energy drives changes in the materials, allowing for the creation of smart devices to protect people from the sun, enable photodynamic therapy, or to improve delivery of adjuvant therapies for radiotherapy. I will also discuss a new project looking at how polymers can target lipid membranes, as a novel target for broad spectrum antivirals. I will introduce high-throughput synthesis of a large library of antiviral polymers, and how we are assessing their activity though data analytics approaches and in-depth chemical characterization.

Biography: Nathan R. B. Boase is a senior lecturer at the Queensland University of Technology, a member of the Centre for Materials Science, and a co-lead of the Medicinal Molecules and Materials Group. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of Queensland in 2015, under the supervision of Prof. Kristofer Thurecht. In 2019 he was recognized as a CAS Future Leader in chemistry, and in 2023 as an AIPS QLD Tall Poppy. His current research explores controlled synthetic strategies to design materials that can respond to their environment. These materials are applied to solve significant challenges in healthcare, such as antibiotic coatings, nanomedicine, and antiviral therapies.