Responsive nanoparticles for drug delivery
Nanoparticles with their small size and functionalisation capacity are emerging as attractive vehicles for drug delivery. Besides penetrating various cellular compartments such as the nucleus, their potential to cross the blood brain barrier may open new ways for drug delivery into the brain. The primary objective of the EU-funded STIRENA (Dual stimuli-responsive nanoparticles as novel topical drug delivery systems) project was to synthesise and characterise nanoparticles suitable for drug delivery. These organic nanoparticles were designed to release their content in response to stimuli such as temperature and pH. For this purpose, they used dual pH-temperature responsive materials such as polyoxazoline, which was mounted on a chitosan framework. Scientists generated fluorescent hydrogel nanoparticles and optimised their drug loading and entrapment efficiency. The thermo-responsive nanoparticles had a 30nm diameter and were loaded with retinoic acid. In vitro screening of these nanoparticles on neural stem cells demonstrated no issues with toxicity or cell viability. Researchers demonstrated the efficient release of retinoic acid using temperature and pH and successfully maintained the neural stem cell identity while preventing differentiation. The STIRENA dual stimuli responsive nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery system enabled scientists to control the release of the drug by changing the stimulus. In a clinical context, this could translate into a skin delivery system that allows the drug to be released, only when the tissue gives the appropriate message.
Keywords
Nanoparticles, drug delivery, temperature, pH, neural stem cells
