THE EFFECT OF THE PROTEIN CORONA ON NANOPARTICLE MARGINATION AND PERMEABILITY IN CANCER DRUG DELIVERY

Abstract

The protein corona refers to an endogenous coat of proteins on the surface of nanoparticles (NPs) that forms spontaneously in protein rich biological environments. Despite advancements in the field, there still exist substantial knowledge gaps in the characterization of the protein corona, particularly on how it affects the flow behaviour of NPs. Central to this is a severe lack of understanding on how the corona affects the margination of NPs towards vascular walls and its permeability across the endothelium, parameters that have important implications in the drug delivery efficacy and efficiency of these NP-corona systems. In this thesis, we explored the effects of the corona on NP margination and permeability. We found that the formation of a protein corona had a profound impact on the margination and permeability of NPs and holds great promise for use in cancer drug delivery.