The focus of my project is the development of new anti-infectives against a type of protists belonging to the genus Acanthamoeba, which are known to cause a rare, but sight-threatening ocular disease called Acanthamoeba Keratitis (AK). The substances I am working with are polycationic oligomers/polymers. My research involves methods such as the cultivation of Acanthamoeba spp. as well as several cell lines of human origin, which I use to conduct substance screening assays and to develop a 3D in vitro infection model of AK - specifically the infected cornea - with the goal of establishing a methodology enabling the therapy-focused approach of identifying new potential drug candidates. Thus, a model facilitating the assessment of efficacy against Acanthamoeba spp., cytotoxicity against host-cells and permeation of compounds into the corneal stroma seems just as important as the development of the respective compounds themselves. Moreover, the establishment of such an in vitro infection model and the application of tissue engineering in pharmaceutical research in general could lessen the burden on animals traditionally used in preclinical trials and reduce costs.
Name of Doctoral Researcher
Tomas Rimkus
Name of Supervisor
Prof. Dr. Stephan Reichl
Institute / Department
Department of Pharmaceutics, TU Braunschweig
Contact details
t.rimkus@tu-braunschweig.de