'Scientist of February' Professor Kyungpyo Park of Seoul National University Develops Radiation Protective Agent

Ministry of Science and ICT and National Research Foundation Announce on the 3rd

Professor Park Kyung-pyo, Seoul National University School of Dentistry. Photo by Ministry of Science and ICT.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] The Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Research Foundation of Korea announced on the 3rd that Professor Park Kyung-pyo of the Graduate School of Dentistry at Seoul National University has been selected as the February recipient of the Scientist of the Month Award.

Professor Park was recognized for developing a nanoparticle protector that shields the entire body from high-dose radiation. Radiation is used for various purposes in daily life, such as CT scans, semiconductor inspections, airport security checks, and food ingredient sorting, but misuse or careless use poses risks of safety accidents due to exposure. Especially, as the global use of radiation in medical fields such as cancer treatment and diagnosis increases, competition to develop drugs that can reduce exposure side effects is fierce.

When exposed to radiation above a certain threshold, water molecules inside cells decompose and produce excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS oxidize intracellular organelles, causing them to lose function and, in severe cases, leading to cell death. Among radiation protectors that rapidly remove ROS to reduce bodily damage, amifostine is the only product approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). However, it is limited to protecting salivary glands during radiation therapy and is difficult to use for other purposes due to toxicity and side effects.

To develop a radiation protector usable throughout the body, Professor Park focused on cerium-manganese oxide, which has excellent ROS scavenging effects, and created a new form of nanoparticle that resolves issues of toxicity and stability in the body. Using gene analysis of artificial organs made from human stem cells, he elucidated the radiation protection mechanism of cerium-manganese oxide nanoparticles.

When an extremely small amount of nanoparticles?only 1/360th of the recommended dose of amifostine?was administered to experimental mice, it was confirmed that side effects such as DNA damage, apoptosis, and stress caused by radiation were dramatically improved, and the expression of genes related to cell regeneration also increased. These research results were published as a cover paper in Advanced Materials in August last year.

Professor Park said, “This research is significant as it laid the groundwork for developing radiation protectors that can broadly protect the human body from radiation exposure not only in medicine but also in industrial and military fields,” adding, “Through follow-up studies, we will explore the potential for cerium-manganese oxide nanoparticles to be applied to the human body in various ways beyond radiation protection.”

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