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Abstract:
Today's Nanotechnology Research Will Lead to Tomorrow's Personalized Medicine Approaches for Children

Pediatric Research Focuses on Nanopediatrics

Philadelphia, PA | Posted on April 30th, 2010

"Children are not small adults"—pediatricians say that's what makes their specialty different from the practice of medicine in adults. For similar reasons, researchers exploring the medical uses of nanotechnology believe that the use of molecular-level nanomedicine techniques in children will also require its own specialty. In their annual supplement for 2010, the editors of Pediatric Research present some of the research that will form the basis of the emerging field of "nanopediatrics." The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, scientists, professionals, and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health, and pharmacy.

Edward R.B. McCabe, M.D., Ph.D., of David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, is Guest Editor of the special supplement. "Nanotechnology and nanomedicine are anticipated to be major drivers of personalized medicine," he writes in an introductory article. "It is essential that we focus the power of these technologies to enable personalized medicine for children, in a specialty of NanoPediatrics."

Initial Studies in Nanopediatrics Look at Diagnosis, Treatment, and More

The papers in the special issue highlight the potential uses of molecular-level nanotechnology to promote children's health in a variety of areas, including disease diagnosis. Nanotechnology could detect subtle DNA abnormalities for rapid, point-of-care diagnosis of genetic-related conditions. Molecular thermometry techniques could detect very small changes in temperature down to the subcellular level, aiding in early detection of tumors or infections. The issue also outlines the development of combined diagnostic and treatment techniques, called "theranostics," which may one day enable diagnosis and treatment of cancers in a single procedure.

New approaches to detect and identify antibiotics in milk illustrate the potential for nanotechnology to enhance food safety. "Nanoinformatics" and DNA-based computing could revolutionize processing of medical information, promoting the clinical uses of nanomedicine. Nanoparticles are being used to study the role of calcification in various diseases, illustrating the use of nanotechnology to advance understanding of how diseases develop.

Several papers in the special supplement describe possible uses of nanomedicine techniques for the treatment of diseases in children:

• "Nano-modified" coatings could help to prevent infection of ventilator tubes in children undergoing mechanical ventilation.
• Designer molecules called "Protacs" could be used to disrupt the growth of cancer cells, providing new approaches to cancer treatment.
• Tissue engineering techniques could be used to grow new organs, including bladders for children with congenital bladder dysfunction.
• Anticancer drugs encapsulated in "flexible delivery vehicles" known as liposomes, could provide highly targeted new approaches to cancer treatment.

Some of these proposed applications may sound like science fiction, and all are in their infancy. However, they point to some of the ways in which nanotechnology could be used to address the unique health challenges of children within the foreseeable future. We would hope that, a decade from now, this field will have grown so as to fill a thick volume with accomplishments in the discipline of nanopediatrics.

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About Wolters Kluwer Health: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW) is a leading international publisher for healthcare professionals and students with nearly 300 periodicals and 1,500 books in more than 100 disciplines publishing under the LWW brand, as well as content-based sites and online corporate and customer services.

LWW is part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health and pharmacy. Major brands include traditional publishers of medical and drug reference tools and textbooks, such as Lippincott Williams & Wilkins and Facts & Comparisons®; and electronic information providers, such as Ovid®, UpToDate®, Medi-Span® and ProVation® Medical.

Wolters Kluwer Health is part of Wolters Kluwer, a market-leading global information services company. Professionals in the areas of legal, business, tax, accounting, finance, audit, risk, compliance, and healthcare rely on Wolters Kluwer’s leading, information-enabled tools and solutions to manage their business efficiently, deliver results to their clients, and succeed in an ever more dynamic world.

Wolters Kluwer has 2009 annual revenues of €3.4 billion ($4.8 billion), employs approximately 19,300 people worldwide, and maintains operations in over 40 countries across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. Its shares are quoted on Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices.

About Pediatric Research
Pediatric Research (www.pedresearch.org) presents the work of leading authorities in pediatric pulmonology, neonatology, cardiology, hematology, neurology, developmental biology, fetal physiology, endocrinology and metabolism, gastroenterology, and nutrition. Directed to research-oriented pediatricians and faculty, the journal publishes the results of significant clinical and laboratory studies. The Journal includes original peer-reviewed articles, abstracts of society meetings, state-of-the-art reviews, as well as supplements on pediatric health issues. It is the official publication of the American Pediatric Society, the European Society for Paediatric Research, and the Society for Pediatric Research.

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Contacts:
Wolters Kluwer Health: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins News office:
530 Walnut St. Philadelphia PA 19106 office: 215-521-8374
Phone main: 215-521-8300
Fax news office: 215-521-8495

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