Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Engineering
Theranostic Nanoparticles For The Treatment Of Cancer, Thomas Moore
Theranostic Nanoparticles For The Treatment Of Cancer, Thomas Moore
All Dissertations
The main focus of this research was to evaluate the ability of a novel multifunctional nanoparticle to mediate drug delivery and enable a non-invasive approach to measure drug release kinetics in situ for the treatment of cancer. These goals were approached by developing a nanoparticle consisting of an inorganic core (i.e. gadolinium sulfoxide doped with europium ions or carbon nanotubes). This was coated with an external amphiphilic polymer shell comprised of a biodegradable polyester (i.e. poly(lactide) or poly(glycolide)), and poly(ethylene glycol) block copolymer. In this system, the inorganic core mediates the imaging aspect, the relatively hydrophobic polyester encapsulates hydrophobic anti-cancer …
In Situ Photopolymerized Hydrogels For Enhancing Protein Delivery, Chien-Chi Lin
In Situ Photopolymerized Hydrogels For Enhancing Protein Delivery, Chien-Chi Lin
All Dissertations
In recent years, there has been immense interest in the utilization of photopolymerized hydrogels as carriers for controlled protein delivery and cell scaffolds for tissue engineering applications. Although poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based hydrogels formed from mild photopolymerization methods have been suggested as biocompatible matrices that allow for safely encapsulating biomolecules including proteins, peptides, DNA, and cells, the adverse effects of photopolymerization reactions on the encapsulated proteins have largely been overlooked. In addition, conventional hydrophilic hydrogels fail to effectively control protein delivery rates due to their high permeability. These two problems are critical since the delivery of protein therapeutics from hydrogel matrices …