Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

Crafting Nanostructured Neural Interfaces With Hydrogel Particles, Emily Ann Morin

Doctoral Dissertations

Central nervous system neural device functionality hinges on effective communication with surrounding neurons. This depends on both the permissiveness of the device material to promote neuron integration and the ability of the device to avoid a chronic inflammatory response. Here, a facile approach has been developed exploring the multiple functionalities of hydrogel particles to provide cues to impart neural integration for such materials. Three distinct, yet interconnected tasks were undertaken: investigating hydrogel particle-modified substrate neuron integration and central nervous system inflammatory response, investigating guided hydrogel particle adsorption, and investigating hydrogel particles as local reservoirs for counteracting adverse effects from oxidative …

Nanomedicine Drug Delivery Across Mucous Membranes, Michael G. Lancina Iii

Theses and Dissertations

NANOMEDECINE DRUG DELIVERY ACROSS MUCOUS MEMBRANES

By Michael G. Lancina III

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth Univeristy, 2017.

Major Director: Dr. Hu Yang, Associate Professor, Chemical and Life Science Engineering

Control over the distribution of therapeutic compounds is a complex and somewhat overlooked field of pharmaceutical research. When swallowing a pill or receiving an injection, it is commonly assumed that drug will spread throughout the body in a more or less uniform concentration and find its way to wherever it is needed. In …