Nanoparticles of biodegradable polymers for delivery of diagnostic/therapeutic agents: Their potential application in brain cancer therapy

Abstract

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) plays important physiological function to maintain homeostatic environment for healthy and efficient brain. It, however, constitutes an obstacle for delivery of imaging sensitizers and therapeutic agents to diagnose and treat brain diseases. This thesis applies nanoparticle technology to solve the problem. The emphasis is given to manufacture and characterization of Gd-DTPA-loaded or paclitaxel-loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles, which are coated by phospholipids or vitamin E TPGS. Particle size and size distribution, surface morphology, surface charge and in vitro drug release were measured/characterized by various state-of-the-art techniques. MDCK cell line was used as an in vitro BBB model for measurement of cellular uptake of fluorescent nanoparticles by microplate reader and cell viability of the drug-loaded nanoparticles by MTT. Effects of particle size and surface coating were closely investigated. The preliminary results showed that it is feasible for nanoparticles to deliver diagnostic or therapeutic agents across the BBB.