Biochemistry and Pharmacology - Research Publications
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ItemTargeting of Cancer Cells Using Click-Functionalized Polymer Capsules(AMER CHEMICAL SOC, 2010-11-17)Targeted delivery of drugs to specific cells allows a high therapeutic dose to be delivered to the target site with minimal harmful side effects. Combining targeting molecules with nanoengineered drug carriers, such as polymer capsules, micelles and polymersomes, has significant potential to improve the therapeutic delivery and index of a range of drugs. We present a general approach for functionalization of low-fouling, nanoengineered polymer capsules with antibodies using click chemistry. We demonstrate that antibody (Ab)-functionalized capsules specifically bind to colorectal cancer cells even when the target cells constitute less than 0.1% of the total cell population. This precise targeting offers promise for drug delivery applications.
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ItemToward Therapeutic Delivery with Layer-by-Layer Engineered Particles(AMER CHEMICAL SOC, 2011-06)Layer-by-layer (LbL)-engineered particles have recently emerged as a promising class of materials for applications in biomedicine, with studies progressing from in vitro to in vivo. The versatility of LbL assembly coupled with particle templating has led to engineered particles with specific properties (e.g., stimuli-responsive, high cargo encapsulation efficiency, targeting), thus offering new opportunities in targeted and triggered therapeutic release. This Perspective highlights an important development by Poon et al. on tumor targeting in vivo using LbL-engineered nanoparticles containing a pH-responsive poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) surface layer. Further, we summarize recent progress in the application of LbL particles in the fields of drug, gene, and vaccine delivery and cancer imaging. Finally, we explore future directions in this field, focusing on the biological processing of LbL-assembled particles.
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ItemPolymersome-Loaded Capsules for Controlled Release of DNA(WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH, 2011-07-18)The formation of a novel drug-delivery carrier for the controlled release of plasmid DNA that comprises layer-by-layer polymer capsules subcompartmentalized with pH-sensitive nanometer-sized polymersomes is reported. The amphiphilic diblock copolymer poly(oligoethylene glycol methacrylate)-block-poly(2-(diisopropylamino)ethyl methacrylate) forms polymersomes at physiological pH, but transitions to unimeric polymer chains upon acidification to cellular endocytic pH. These polymersomes can thus release an encapsulated payload in response to a change in pH from physiological to endocytic conditions. Multicomponent layer-by-layer capsules are formed by exploiting the ability of tannic acid to act as an efficient hydrogen-bond donor for both the polymersomes and poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) at physiological pH. These capsules show release of a plasmid DNA payload encapsulated within the polymersome subcompartments in response to changes in pH between physiological and endocytic conditions.
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ItemChallenges facing colloidal delivery systems: From synthesis to the clinic(ELSEVIER SCIENCE LONDON, 2011-06)