Anthony McGoron, Ph.D.

Biography

Dr. Anthony McGoron is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the College of Engineering and Computing. He received his PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Louisiana Tech University and post-doctoral training in the Department of Pharmacology and Cell Biophysics at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Before Joining FIU he was as Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati Department of Radiology, Divisions of Nuclear Medicine and Medical Physics. He is a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE). He served as Interim Chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering from 2007-2010. He was National President to the Alpha Eta Mu Beta Biomedical Engineering Honor Society 2010-2014. He has over 200 journal articles, book chapters and proceeding papers. He has received funding from the NIH, NSF, DOD, AHA, and Fl-DOH as well as numerous companies.

Lab Website

Anthony J. McGoron

Research

Drug delivery research may involve the design of new drugs, or developing strategies to monitor and improve drug transport to target tissue. The primary research focus in this lab is the development of tissue or cell specific contrast agents and probes (both optical and radioactive) for noninvasive molecular imaging of cellular and tissue characterization, for monitoring toxicity, for tracking the biodistribution of known toxins and drugs, and image guided therapy. Another focus is the development of multimodal drugs that simultaneously image and provide therapy. Of primary concern as new drugs are developed is that these drugs be specific in terms of their mechanism and site of action. Verifying that the drug has reached their target is an important component of therapy.

Molecular Imaging allows visualization of not only organs and cells but also biochemical processes within the cells that are associated with specific disease. This information can improve the accuracy of a diagnosis, provide better assessment of the severity of disease and even monitor the response to therapy. Light at the near-infrared wavelength can penetrate deeper into tissue than can visible light and does not induce DNA damage. Therefore, true in vivo imaging is practical with near-infrared probes. Dyes that absorb energy in the near-infrared region will release heat following exposure to the appropriate wavelength and can kill cancer cells. Therefore, by including such dyes with the chemotherapy agent or incorporating the dye into the drug delivery vehicle, therapy can be targeted since the drug will not be activated until it has reached its intended target. The therapy is image guided because the probe/therapeutic drug can be detected in vivo. Compared to optical imaging, Positron Emission Tomography (PET) has the advantage of greater resolution and greatly reduced attenuation and scattering. In addition, the radiolabeling of drugs or biochemically important molecules with PET isotopes is much simpler, and typically results in chemicals with similar or identical properties to the original chemical. Such imaging approaches have been applied to understand the molecular basis of diseases, biochemical processes, gene delivery and expression, tissue receptor-ligand activity, enzyme mediated processes, drug discovery, monitoring novel therapy techniques, etc.

Particles in a size range of 110-140 nm seem to be ideal drug delivery vehicles because they first avoid liver uptake, which filters smaller particles, but are small enough not to be removed by macrophages. For optimal performance, particles should have a small size distribution, uniform surface properties, must be able to complex various molecules very efficiently, must remain in the circulation long enough to be removed by the target tissue rather than the reticuloendothelial system (macrophages), and must be biocompatible and biodegradable. Small particles with neutral surfaces and prepared with polymers of high molecular weights are slowly cleared by macrophages while large particles with high surface potentials and prepared with polymers of low molecular weights are rapidly cleared by the macrophages. Nanoparticles coated with a higher molecular weight dextran or poly-ethylene-glycol (PEG) leads to a decrease of the surface charge, which increases their circulation time. Nanoparticles (polymer or liposomes) can be modified to target specific cells and designed to carry multiple therapeutic agents and multiple imaging probes.

Radiochemistry and Dosimetry

We are developing PET radiochemicals that report regional metabolic/functional variables of various organs or tumors, and examining their cellular uptake kinetics. In addition to clinical studies, tests are conducted in whole animal, isolated organ and isolated cell models. We are developing tools for automatic segmentation and registration of organs and tumors to accurately determine tumor functional and anatomical volumes which is required for accurate dosimetry calculations for Selective Internal Radiation Therapy (SIRT) planning.

PET/CT image of a patient with liver cancer demonstrating the mismatch between the functional and anatomical size of the tumor, which can negatively impact patient response to therapy.

Respiratory Gated Positron Emission Tomography (PET)

PET glucose metabolism is often used to diagnose cancer since the fast growing highly metabolic tumor requires more energy than surrounding tissue. An accurate diagnosis requires a precise measure of the size of the tumor. But, due to the movement of the lungs during respiration, obtaining an accurate image of a lung or liver tumors is difficult. We are developing instrumentation and imaging processing algorithms to gate the PET camera acquisition with the patient’s respiratory motion to reduce the lung motion artifacts. Recently PET has been combined with CT, which provides anatomy. In addition to supplying an anatomic reference for the PET metabolic image, the CT is also used to correct for attenuation of the PET to improve image quality. In order to apply CT attenuation correction to imagines of tissue in the lung, a computer-assisted automatic identification of lung lesions in the PET/CT images is being developed to account for the movement of the lungs during the PET imaging.

PET and CT images from a GE Discover LS Hybrid PET/CT from Baptist Hospital of Miami.

From left to right are the CT, PET, and PET/CT fused images. Right: PET image of a dynamic lung phantom imaged with the tumor (a) static, (b) the tumor moving, and (c) after motion correction.

Nanoscale Drug Design and Delivery for Improved Cancer Diagnosis and Therapy

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the US, exceeded only by heart disease. Early detection of small primary tumors is critical for successful therapy and improved survival rates. Chemotherapy is often the first choice for treating many cancers. It is critical that the chemical be sequestered only in the target tissue at toxic concentrations so that nontarget tissue exposure is minimized. However, it is often difficult to ensure that the chemotherapy targets only the cancer and further that the chemical is localizing in the target tissue. Cancer cells easily take up extremely small (nano-sized) particles. New technologies are being developed to allow for the creation of complex nanoscale materials as drug delivery vehicles and sensors. Combining therapy with imaging has the potential to enhance the efficacy of treatment by ensuring and verifying that the drug reaches the target tissue, while minimizing nontarget tissue uptake. Light in the near-infrared (NIR) wavelength can easily pass through tissue and therefore, NIR fluorescent tracers can be used for imaging. Dyes that absorb energy may also release heat following exposure to the appropriate wavelength light and kill cancer cells. With a light sensitive dye incorporated into the drug delivery vehicle, therapy can be targeted since the drug won’t be activated with a laser until the drug has reached its intended target. The long term objective of this study is to develop a methodology of improved diagnosis and treatment of cancer by combining therapy and imaging in the same drug. The study is a collaboration of engineers, chemists, biologists, and clinicians with expertise in drug design, drug delivery modeling, and experimental models of cancer.

Schematic of multimodal targeted polymer nanoparticle.

Upper Left: Indocyanine Green (ICG) loaded polymer nanoparticles in cancer cells. Upper Right Doxorubicin (DOX) loaded polymer nanoparticles in cancer cells. Lower Left: Free DOX localizes in the nucleus (green) of cancer cells while free ICG localizes in the cytosol (red). Lower Right. Antibody-conjugated DOX loaded polymer naoparticles in cancer cells containing antibody specific membrane receptors.

Selected Publications

27     Alejandro Amor-Coarasa*, Andrew Milera, Denny Carvajal, Seza Gulec, Jared Leichner, and Anthony J. McGoron^†, “68Ga-NOTA-CHSg and -CHSg Labeled Microspheres for Lung Perfusion and Liver Radiomicrospheres Therapy Planning,” International Journal of Molecular Imaging, vol. 2013, Article ID 279872, 9 pages, 2013. doi:10.1155/2013/279872

28     Bhardwaj*, V., S. Srinivasan*, A.J. McGoron. AgNPs-Based Label-Free Colloidal SERS Nanosensor for the Rapid and Sensitive Detection of Stress-Proteins Expressed in Response to Environmental-Toxins. Biosensors and Bioelectronics S12: 005. doi: 10.4172/2155-6210.S12-005 (2013) 

29       Srinivasan*, S. R. Manchanda, A. Fernandez-Fernandez*, T. Lei*, A. J. McGoron^†. Near-Infrared Fluorescing IR820-Chitosan Conjugate for Multifunctional Cancer Theranostic Applications, Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology 119:52-59, 2013.

30       Tang*, J., A.J. McGoron^†. Increasing the Rate of Heating: A Potential Therapeutic Approach for Achieving Synergistic Tumor Killing in Combined Hyperthermia and Chemotherapy. Int J of Hyperthermia. 29(2):145-155, 2013.

31       Gill*, P., N. Munroe, and A.J. McGoron. Characterization and Degradation Behavior of Anodized Magnesium-Hydroxyapatite Metal Matrix Composites. Journal of Biomimetics, Biomaterials, and Tissue Engineering. 16:55-69, 2012.

32       Persaud-Sharma*, D, N. Budiansky, A.J. McGoron. Mechanical Properties and Tensile Failure Analysis of Novel Bio-absorbable Mg-Zn-Cu and Mg-Zn-Se Alloys for Endovascular Applications. Metals. 3:23-40, 2012 doi:10.3390/met3010023

33       Goryawala* M., M.R. Guillen, S. Gulec, T. Barot, R. Suthar, R. Bhatt*, A. McGoron and M. Adjouadi, An Accurate 3D Liver Segmentation Method for Selective Internal Radiation Therapy Using a Modified K-Means Algorithm and Parallel Computing. Int. J. of Innovative Computing Information and Control. 8(10):6515-6538, 2012.

34       Bhatt*, R. M. Adjouadi, M. Goryawala*, S. Gulec, and A. McGoron^†. An algorithm for PET tumor volume and activity quantification: Without specifying camera’s point spread function (PSF). Medical Physics. 39(7):4187-4203, 2012.

35       Manchanda, R., A. Fernandez-Fernandez*, D.A. Carvajal*; T. Lei*, Y. Tang*, A.J. McGoron. Nanoplexes for Cell Imaging and Hyperthermia: In vitro Studies. J of Biomedical Nanotechnology. 8:699–707, 2012.

36       Goryawala* M., M.R. Guillen, M. Cabrerizo, A. Barreto, S. Gulec, T. Barot, R. Suthar, R. Bhatt*, A. McGoron, M. Adjouadi. A 3D Liver Segmentation Method with Parallel Computing for Selective Internal Radiation Therapy. IEEE – Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine. 16(1):62-69, 2012.

37       Fernandez-Fernandez*, A, R. Manchanda, T. Lei*, D. Carvajal*, Y. Tang*, S. Kazmi*, A.J. Mcgoron^†. A Comparative Study of Optical and Heat Generation Properties of IR820 and Indocyanine Green. Mol Imaging. 11(2):99-113. 2012. DOI 10.2310/7290.2011.00031

38     Persaud-Sharma,* D., A. McGoron Biodegradable Magnesium Alloys: A Review of Material Development and Applications. Journal of Biomimetics Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering; 12:25-39, 2012. DOI: 10.4028/www.scientific.net/JBBTE.12.25

39     Persaud-Sharma*, D., N. Munroe, A. McGoron. Electro and Magneto-Electropolished Surface Micro-Patterning on Binary and Ternary Nitinol. Trends Biomater Artif Organs. 2012; 26(2): 74–85.

40     Goryawala*, M., M.R. Guillen, A. Barreto, R. Bhatt*, A. McGoron, M. Adjouadi. Design and Evaluation of Parallel Processing Techniques for 3D Liver Segmentation and Volume Rendering. Journal on Software Engineering. 5(4):12-27, 2011.

41     Fernandez-Fernandez*, A., R. Manchanda, A.J. McGoron^†. Theranostic Applications of Nanomaterials in Cancer: Drug. Delivery, Image-Guided Therapy, and Multifunctional Platforms. Appl Biochem Biotechnol. 165(7-8):1628-51, 2011.

42     Haider*, W., N. Munroe, V. Tek, P. K. S. Gill*, Y. Tang*, A. J. McGoron. Cytotoxicity of Metal Ions Released from Nitinol Alloys on Endothelial Cells. Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance. 2011. DOI: 10.1007/s11665-011-9884-5.

43     Lei*, T., S. Srinivasan*, Y. Tang*, R. Manchanda, A. Nagesetti*, A. Fernandez-Fernandez, A.J. McGoron^†. Comparing Cellular Uptake and Cytotoxicity of Targeted Drug Carriers in Cancer Cell Lines with Different Drug Resistance Mechanisms. Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine. 7(3):324-332, 2011 doi:10.1016/j.nano.2010.11.004. NIHMS 254071

44     Pulletikurthi*, C., N. Munroe, P. Gill*, S. Pandya*, D. Persaud*, W. Haider*, K. Iyer*, and A. McGoron Cytotoxicity of Ni from Surface-Treated Porous Nitinol (PNT) on Osteoblast Cells. Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance. 2011. DOI: 10.1007/s11665-011-9930-3

45     Zhang*, Z. A.J. McGoron, ET Crumpler, and CZ Li. Co-culture based blood-brain barrier in vitro model, a tissue engineering approach using immortalized cell lines for drug transport study. Appl Biochem Biotechnol (2011) 163:278–295 DOI 10.1007/s12010-010-9037-6.

46     Tang*, Y., T. Lei*, R. Manchanda*, A. Nagesetti*, A. Fernandez-Fernandez*, S. Srinivasan*, A.J. McGoron^†. Simultaneous Delivery of Chemotherapeutic and Thermal-Optical Agents to Cancer Cells by a Polymeric (PLGA) Nanocarrier: an In Vitro Study. Pharm Res (2010) 27:2242–2253. DOI 10.1007/s11095-010-0231-6.

47     Wang*, Q., A.J. McGoron, R. Bianco, Y. Kato, L. Pinchuk, and R.T. Schoephoerster. In Vivo Assessment of a Novel Polymer (SIBS) Trileaflet Heart Valve. Journal of Heart Valve Disease. 2010, 19(4):499-505

48     Manchanda, R., A. Fernandez-Fernandez*, A. Nagesetti*, and A.J. McGoron, Preparation and characterization of a polymeric (PLGA) nanoparticulate drug delivery system with simultaneous incorporation of chemotherapeutic and thermo-optical agents. Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 2010, 75:260–267.

49     Wang*, J., M. de Valle*, M. Goryawala*, J. Franquiz and A. McGoron^†. Computer Assisted Detection and Quantification of Lung Tumors in Respiratory Gated PET/CT Images: Phantom Study. Med Biol Eng Comput. 2010, 48:49–58.

50     Tang*, Y. and A.J. McGoron^†. Combined Effects of Laser-ICG Photothermotherapy and Doxorubicin Chemotherapy on Ovarian Cancer Cells. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology 2009, 97:138-144.

51     Wang*, Q., A.J. McGoron, L. Pinchuk, R.T Schoephoerster. A Novel Small Animal Model for Biocompatibility Assessment of Polymeric Materials for Use in Prosthetic Heart Valves. Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part A. 2009 )

52     Gulec, S.A., R. Selwyn, R. Weiner, P. Flamen, G. Mesoloras, D. Lamonica, J. Machac, G. Hiatt, O. Ugur, A. McGoron. Radiomicrosphere Therapy: Nuclear Medicine Considerations, Guidelines and Protocols. J International Oncology. 2009, 2(1):26-39.

53     McGoron^†, A.J., M. Capille*, M.F. Georgiou, P. Sanchez, J.  Solano, M. Gonzalez-Brito, and J.W. Kuluz. Brain Perfusion SPECT Analysis using Reconstructed ROI Maps of Radioactive Microsphere derived Cerebral Blood Flow and Statistical Parametric Mapping. BMC Medical Imaging, 2008, 8:4.

(^† corresponding author, * student)