Medical & Biotech – Page 39 – TechConnect Briefs

Programming and switching the pharmacokinetics of nanoscale delivery vehicles in vivo

Chien M.-P., Gianneschi N.C., University of California San Diego, US

It has been shown that the morphology of nanomaterials greatly impacts the pharmacokinetic profile of the material, with larger micronscale fibril-like objects having longer circulation times while smaller nanomaterials show a greater rate of internalization [...]

Nanosystem for targeting Treg in vivo

Bottini M., Bottini N., Sacchetti C., Rapini N., Rosato N., Magrini A., Bottini M., Bottini N., Sanford Burnham Medical Research Institute, US

Due to their ability to suppress the activity of autoreactive cells, “natural” CD4+ CD25high FoxP3+ T cells (Treg) are important drug targets for autoimmune diseases and malignancies. Immunological studies are revealing a growing subset of [...]

Lipid nanoparticles for enhancing immune responses to protein antigens

Courant T., Reynaud H.L., Hoang A., Villiers C., Mittler F., Texier I., Marche P.N., Navarro F.P., CEA/LETI/MINATEC, FR

In the near future, novel vaccines will be needed, particularly nanoparticles-based vaccine formulations for figthing problematic infectious diseases like tuberculosis, AIDS/ HIV or malaria and also cancers. Here, we described the development of versatile chemical [...]

Thermosensitive Vaginal Gel Containing PLGA-NTRI Conjugate Nanoparticles for HIV Prophylaxis

Rajca A., Li Q., Date A., Destache C., Creighton University School of Pharmacy & Health Professions, US

A critical component to the prevention of the sexual transmission of HIV is adherence to the prevention modality. We have conjugated nucleoside-reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) to a biocompatible polymer, PLGA using an amide bond. We [...]

Reduction-sensitive hyaluronic acid nanoparticles for targeted intracellular deliery of doxorubicin

Saravanakumar G., Shin J.M., Um W., Park J.H., Sungkyunkwan University, KR

Disulfide-containing HA dodecyl conjugates (HA-SS-DDTs) were synthesized using the facile thiol-exchange reaction as the carrier for intracellular delivery of doxorubicin (DOX). Owing to its amphiphilicity, HA-SS-DDT could form self-assembled nanoparticles in an aqueous condition. The [...]

Approaches to surface-functionalised materials for biomedical applications

Pitt D.W., Treharne A., Grossel M.C., University of Southampton, UK

There are many types of retinal disease which vary widely, with some being easier to treat than others. One such example is Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) which is the largest cause of blindness for those [...]

A Molecular Modeling Approach towards Engineering of Polymer Nanogels for Controlled Drug Delivery

Dutta R.C., Rai B., Tata Research Development and Design Centre, IN

Traditionally, a drug is administered initially at a higher dosage so as to repeat the next dose after several hours or days. This, besides being un-economical, results in side effects. Recently, there has been an [...]

Reverse Thermoresponsive Polymers for Sustained Delivery of Therapeutic Agents

Mayadunne R., Balachandra A., Gunatillake T., Lindall C., CSIRO, AU

CSIRO has developed thermoresponsive polymers for encapsulation and sustianed release of bioactives. They are stable aqueous solutions over 24 months, easily pass through a 25 gauge needle at room temperature and immediately gel into a [...]

Effect of cholesterol on the transfection efficiency of DOTAP-containing lipoplexes

Pozzi D., Cardarelli F., Salomone F., Marchini C., Amenitsch H., Caracciolo G., Sapienza University of Rome, IT

Here, we have studied the effect of cholesterol on the transfection efficiency (TE) of cationic liposomes made of 1,2-dioleoyl-3-trimethylammonium-propane (DOTAP) and dioleoylphosphocholine (DOPC) in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. We held the charge of the [...]

Gold-Coated Liposomes Encapsulating Signaling Molecules for Initiating Cellular Communication

Orsinger G.V., Romanowski M., University of Arizona, US

To better understand the complex communication pathways of the tumor microenvironment, and therefore better design and develop therapies and diagnostics for cancers, experimental methods of probing cellular communication at a single to multi-cell level are [...]