Dr. Dipanjan Pan

The PhysOrg article New disease-fighting nanoparticles look like miniature pastries said

Ultra-miniature bialy-shaped particles — called nanobialys because they resemble tiny versions of the flat, onion-topped rolls popular in New York City — could soon be carrying medicinal compounds through patients’ bloodstreams to tumors or atherosclerotic plaques.
 
The nanobialys are an important addition to the stock of diagnostic and disease-fighting nanoparticles developed by researchers in the Consortium for Translational Research in Advanced Imaging and Nanomedicine (C-TRAIN) at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. C-TRAIN’s “smart” nanoparticles can deliver drugs and imaging agents directly to the site of tumors and plaques.
 
“The nanobialys contain manganese instead of gadolinium,” says first author Dipanjan Pan, Ph.D., research instructor in medicine in the Cardiovascular Division. “Manganese is an element found naturally in the body. In addition, the manganese in the nanobialys is tied up so it stays with the particles, making them very safe.”
 
Pan, who is a research instructor in medicine, played a leading role in the creation of nanobialys and chose the particles’ name. “When we looked at the particles with an electron microscope, we saw they are round and flat, with a dimple in the center, like red blood cells, but also a little irregular, like bagels,” he says. “I came across the word bialy, which is a Polish roll like a bagel without a hole that can be made with different toppings. So I called the particles nanobialys.”

Dipanjan Pan, Ph.D. is Research Instructor of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Diseases, Washington University School of Medicine.
 
Dipanjan is interested in understanding and developing novel lipid-based and polymeric nanoparticle platforms for molecular imaging, drug delivery, and nonviral gene delivery applications with a focus on structure, function, and engineering processes. His multidisciplinary approaches encompass a variety of chemical, polymeric, molecular biological, and analytical methods.
 
More specifically, his current inquiries also address the design, synthesis, and characterization of nanoscopic materials and contribute to the overall research orientation of the Consortium for Translational Research in Advanced Imaging and Nanomedicine (C-TRAIN).
 
Dipanjan coauthored Highly site-selective alkylation reaction of bent aza-heterocycles by alkyllithium and alkyl halides, Folic acid-conjugated nanostructured materials designed for cancer cell targeting, Ligand-Directed Nanobialys as Theranostic Agent for Drug Delivery and Manganese-Based Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Vascular Targets, Biologically-active Nanostructures Derived from Functionalized Polymerization Initiators, Peptide-Derivatized Shell-Cross-Linked Nanoparticles. 1. Synthesis and Characterization, and Shell Cross-Linked Nanoparticles Designed To Target Angiogenic Blood Vessels via α_vβ₃ Receptor-Ligand Interactions.
 
Dipanjan earned his B.S. in Chemistry at Vidyasagar University, India in 1995, his M.S. in Organic Chemistry at Vidyasagar University, India in 1997, and his Ph.D. in Synthetic Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur in 2002.