Lipid polymer hybrid nanoparticles for the delivery of cancer drugs
Salmon, Andrew
Salmon, Andrew
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Publication Date
2025-01-13
Type
master thesis
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Abstract
The application of chemistry to aid cancer treatment is a difficult but worthwhile pursuit. Some of the challenges associated with cancer therapy include a lack of efficiency and safety, biological barriers, inaccurate targeting, insufficient circulation half-life and multidrug resistance (MDR). However some of these challenges may be overcome or mitigated through the use of lipid polymer hybrid nanoparticles (LPHNPs) of appropriate diameters. LPHNPs are a relatively new class of drug delivery system which combines the advantages of both liposomes and polymers. In this sense they aim to be biocompatible and achieve a circulation half-life long enough to promote substantial accumulation at the targeted cancer site. Nanoparticles with dimensions in the 1-100 nm range have the ability to recognize cancer tissue, overcome biological barriers and accumulate in tumour cells due to poor lymphatic drainage and leaky vasculature of tumours. The versatility of LPHNPs is proven by their ability to encapsulate both lipophilic and hydrophilic drugs. The focus of this study was the optimisation of a one-step LPHNP synthesis. This was achieved through altering the reaction parameters and monitoring the effect this had on the average diameters of the resulting LPHNPs. The effect of sodium salicylate on this reaction was also examined as it solubilises the cancer drug which was intended for loading, erlotinib. The robustness and reproducibility of this reaction was also tested through scale-up reactions. The end result of these experiments was a synthesis method which could consistently produce LPHNPs with average diameters of less than 200 nm.
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University of Galway
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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International