Nanoparticle Delivery of Therapuetics for Autoimmune Diseases (2013)

Undergraduates: Patrick Short, James Byrne, Tim Eitas, Reid Roberts

Faculty Advisor: Joseph DeSimone
Department: Biology

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Nanoparticle delivery of therapeutics have wide potential due to the ability to simultaneously increase the effective dose by targeting a particular area (such as a tumor growth site in cancer) or by timing the slow release of drug over an extended time period. This can result in lower costs by allowing smaller doses of expensive therapeutics as well as less frequent dosing due to the extended release. In addition, by targeting specific areas with particles that can be selectively trafficked by the body, some side effects may be eliminated that are otherwise present when therapeutics are taken in large doses and spread throughout the entire body. While chemotherapeutic delivery for cancer treatment has long been a focus of nanoparticle delivery systems, we show that PRINT particles can be used to delivery therapeutics targeted to treat autoimmune disorders and have shown efficacy in in vitro models using human T-cells and dendritic cells. This use of biodegradable PRINT particles loaded with a therapeutic cargo has incredible potential for further development.