Eszter Boros

BSc/MSc – University of Zurich (2003-2006/2007)
PhD – University of British Columbia (2007-2011)
Postdoc – Harvard Medical School (2011-2015)
Instructor – Harvard Medical School (2015-2017)
Assistant Professor – Stony Brook University (2017-2022)
Associate Professor – University of Wisconsin-Madison (2023- )

Research Interests:

Early Transition Radiometal Chemistry

Increasing availability of high energy, biomedical cyclotrons provides access to radiometals with properties suitable for PET imaging and radiotherapy. We are interested in exploring the the aqueous, radioactive coordination chemistry of early transition metals/pseudolanthanides, specifically Ti(IV), Zr(IV), Sc(III) and Y(III), and applying this chemistry to the imaging and treatment of cancer. We employ a palette of spectroscopic, physical inorganic chemistry methods to characterize the to-date understudied, aqueous coordination chemistry of these Lewis acids. Most recently, we have begun to explore reactivity and chemical transformations on tracer scale. Funding: NIH R01, DOE

Lanthanide-based Imaging Probes

The prognosis and survival of patients with aggressive cancers depends on the presence of positive tumor margins (defined as the presence of tumor cells in the surrounding area) post surgical resection. Combining radioactive and luminescent reporters in a targeted molecular probe has the potential to provide pre-operative nuclear imaging, real-time luminescence-guided surgery followed by ex vivo imaging with one single probe. We are interested in employing luminescent lanthanides for in vivo optical imaging, a thus far insurmountable challenge due to the lanthanides’ need for short wave excitation. We have recently bypassed the need for short-wave, external excitation sources by carrying out in situ excitation of lanthanide luminescence with Cherenkov radiation emissive radioisotopes. Following extensive in vitro validation, we currently work on demonstrating that lanthanides are suitable for the in vivo optical imaging of cancer.  Funding: NSF Career, NIH R21, Sloan

Imaging and Treatment of Bacterial Infections with Siderophores

Antibiotic resistance is an imminent global health threat. Accelerated diagnosis and new life-saving treatments are needed to overcome resistance. Most pathogens have developed sophisticated mechanisms to sequester the essential metal ion Fe(III) from their host. This process involves Fe(III) chelators called siderophores. Naturally occurring and synthetic siderophores can act as Trojan horses to deliver antibiotics to the site of infection. These conjugates are referred to as sideromycins. We are exploring sideromycins as new therapeutic tools for the treatment of bacterial infections in combination with non-redox active metal ions that mimic Fe(III), but can further enhance bacteriotoxicity, such as Ga(III). We also employ radioactive gallium isotopes to characterize stability, bacterial uptake and in vivo pharmacokinetics of our constructs, providing unprecedented access to predicting bicompatibility and efficacy. Funding: NIH R35, Dreyfus