PVA Nanocarrier System for Controlled Drug Delivery

Abstract

Researchers at the University of California, Davis have designed and synthesized a unique type of water-soluble, biodegradable targeting poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanocarrier system for controlled delivery of boronic acid containing drugs, chemotherapy agents, proteins, photodynamic therapy agents and imaging agents.

Full Description

Nanotechnology, as an emerging field, shows promise for the development of novel diagnostic, imaging and therapeutic agents for a variety of diseases including cancer. Nanoparticles offer several distinct advantages in these applications such as improved solubility, prolonged in vivo circulation time and preferential accumulation at a tumor site. One obstacle to the effective clinical application of nano-therapeutics is a lack of high affinity and high specificity targeting ligands that can deliver nanomedicines to a tumor or target site with high efficiency in vivo.

Researchers at the University of California, Davis have designed and synthesized a unique type of water-soluble, biodegradable targeting PVA nanocarrier system for controlled delivery of boronic acid containing drugs, chemotherapy agents, proteins, photodynamic therapy agents and imaging agents. These PVA-based carriers can: (i) be engineered to maximize preferential uptake into target sites (e.g. tumors); (ii) minimize premature release of boronic acid containing therapeutics, chemotherapeutic agents, and proteins and; (iii) can be triggered to release a payload drug on demand at the tumor site via exogenous administration of mannitol and/or reducing agents. These biodegradable nanoparticles are promising agents for the targeted intracellular delivery of anticancer drugs.

Applications

• Cancer treatment via targeted nanotechnology

Features/Benefits

• Cost effective
• Biocompatible and water soluble polymer
• Maximum preferential uptake at target site
• Controlled release of boronic acid therapeutics, chemotherapeutic agents and proteins
• On demand triggered release of payload at target site (e.g. tumor)

Patent Status