Nanoparticle research holds promise for targeted drug delivery

Joshua Reineke, Ph.D., assistant professor of pharmaceutical sciences in the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, examined how a biodegradable polymer particle - polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) -breaks down in live tissue.

He believes the potential impact of his work is broad, as nanoparticles have increasingly been developed as carriers of drug treatments for diseases and as imaging agents; they are also used in numerous consumer products.

The kinetics of nanoparticle biodegradation is an important factor that can control how and where a drug is released, impacting treatment efficacy as well as potential toxicity to non-target tissues from nanoparticle exposure.

‘If nanoparticles given to a patient release a drug before particles can ever get to target tissue, then we get high toxicity and low effect,’ Reineke said in a statement. ‘Conversely, if particles are drawn to a tissue but don’t release the drug until long afterward, then we also don’t get the therapeutic effect.’