Porous silicon–polymer composites for cell culture and tissue engineering applications

Journal of Nanomaterials

Voelcker

et al. 2015

Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), available for a range of diseases, including tumours, leukemia, and multiple sclerosis, are emerging as the fastest growing area of therapeutic drug development. The greatest advantage of therapeutic mAbs is their ability to bind with a high degree of specificity to target proteins involved in disease pathophysiology. In response, effector functions are triggered and these ameliorate the disease cascade. As an alternative to this reliance on effector functions, drugs can be conjugated to mAbs. The ability to target compounds to the site of pathology minimises the nonspecific side effects associated with systemic administration. In both instances, optimising the delivery, absorption, and distribution of the mAbs, whilst minimising potential side effects, remain the key hurdles to improved clinical outcomes. Novel delivery strategies are being investigated with more vigour in recent years, and nanoparticles are being identified as suitable vehicles. In conjunction with permitting a controlled release profile, nanoparticles protect the drug from degradation, reducing both the dose and frequency of administration. Moreover, these particles shield the patient from the immune complications associated with high dose mAb infusions or drug cytotoxicity. This review outlines recent advances in nanoparticle technology and how they may be of benefit as therapeutic mAb delivery/targeting vehicles. StructureThe main type of therapeutic mAb is IgG, approximately 150 kDa sized Y-shaped protein structures comprised of two heavy chains linked by disulphide bridges to two light chains (Figure 1(a)). IgG antibodies contain two identical antigen binding sites (Fab), each containing complementarity determining regions (CDRs), which are variable in sequence. IgG antibodies also contain a conserved Fc domain which

Section: Porous Siliconmentioning

confidence: 99%

Therapeutic Potential of Inorganic Nanoparticles for the Delivery of Monoclonal Antibodies

Turner

Journal of Nanomaterials

Voelcker

et al. 2015

“…To avoid either, controlling the release kinetics is crucial to maintain the drug’s therapeutic window. Porous silicon (pSi) and microparticles formed from it (pSi MPs) are promising candidates for various biomedical applications ranging from biosensors, drug delivery to imaging, theranostic applications, and even tissue engineering scaffolds. − This wide scope of application is partly credited to the ease of fabrication of pSi and a broad variety of pore structures possible, with the potential to be subsequently functionalized using a range of chemistries including oxidations, , nitridization, silanization, , hydrosilylations, , carbonization reactions, , hydrosilanization, and surface-initiated/surface-grafted polymerizations or combinations thereof …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this work, we marry the two ideas of a hydrophilic porous silicon drug carrier and hydrophobic plasma overcoating to develop a novel class of drug release system. This drug release system combines the biocompatibility of pSi , with the tunability of release by varying the overcoating’s thickness. We have investigated the feasibility of this approach by loading the pSi MPs with the anticancer drug camptothecin (CPT), followed by plasma treatment with the fluorinated precursor perfluorooctane (PFO) while agitating the pSi MPs in the plasma by vibrational excitation from acoustic sound waves of hard rock music.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Thunderstruck”: Plasma-Polymer-Coated Porous Silicon Microparticles As a Controlled Drug Delivery System

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

Michl

Delalat

et al. 2016

Controlling the release kinetics from a drug carrier is crucial to maintain a drug's therapeutic window. We report the use of biodegradable porous silicon microparticles (pSi MPs) loaded with the anticancer drug camphothecin, followed by a plasma polymer overcoating using a loudspeaker plasma reactor. Homogenous "Teflon-like" coatings were achieved by tumbling the particles by playing AC/DC's song "Thunderstruck". The overcoating resulted in a markedly slower release of the cytotoxic drug, and this effect correlated positively with the plasma polymer coating times, ranging from 2-fold up to more than 100-fold. Ultimately, upon characterizing and verifying pSi MP production, loading, and coating with analytical methods such as time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, thermal gravimetry, water contact angle measurements, and fluorescence microscopy, human neuroblastoma cells were challenged with pSi MPs in an in vitro assay, revealing a significant time delay in cell death onset.

“…This reaction forms more stable Si-C bonds on the pSi surface, by exposing the Si-H surface to alkene, alkyne or aldehyde groups [37]. This hydrosilylation reaction can be promoted by numerous methods including thermal, chemical, photochemical, electrochemical and microwave methods [50].…”

Section: Biocompatibility Of Porous Siliconmentioning

confidence: 99%

Porous silicon for drug delivery applications and theranostics: recent advances, critical review and perspectives

Kumeria

Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery

Maher

et al. 2017

Porous silicon (pSi) engineered by electrochemical etching has been used as a drug delivery vehicle to address the intrinsic limitations of traditional therapeutics. Biodegradability, biocompatibility, and optoelectronic properties make pSi a unique candidate for developing biomaterials for theranostics and photodynamic therapies. This review presents an updated overview about the recent therapeutic systems based on pSi, with a critical analysis on the problems and opportunities that this technology faces as well as highlighting pSi's growing potential. Areas covered: Recent progress in pSi-based research includes drug delivery systems, including biocompatibility studies, drug delivery, theranostics, and clinical trials with the most relevant examples of pSi-based systems presented here. A critical analysis about the technical advantages and disadvantages of these systems is provided along with an assessment on the challenges that this technology faces, including clinical trials and investors' support. Expert opinion: pSi is an outstanding material that could improve existing drug delivery and photodynamic therapies in different areas, paving the way for developing advanced theranostic nanomedicines and incorporating payloads of therapeutics with imaging capabilities. However, more extensive in-vivo studies are needed to assess the feasibility and reliability of this technology for clinical practice. The technical and commercial challenges that this technology face are still uncertain.