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Polymer Microcapsules for Off-the-shelf Drug Deliver

A method of drug delivery that avoids some of the problems with many therapeutic drug delivery systems has been developed by a team of chemical engineers at Penn State. The researchers developed polymer microcapsules measuring less than 5 microns in diameter that form around solid particles of drugs or else are hollowed out to contain liquid drugs. By forming the microcapsules on a flat surface, a tiny hole measuring less than 5 percent of the surface area remains where the capsule meets the surface. The capsule is coated with a barrier coating so that the drug escapes slowly through the hole. This slow release of poisonous cancer destroying chemicals means that more of the chemical will reach the targeted cells and less will enter the patient’s system. The researchers envision their microcapsules as off-the-shelf delivery systems, suitable for a variety of drugs. The capsules are capable of being dried out for long periods in storage, and then rehydrated when filled with liquid medications.

The researchers, whose work appears online in Soft Matters, are Darrell Velegol, associate professor of chemical engineering, Huda A. Jerri, graduate student in chemical engineering and Rachel A. Dutter, undergraduate in chemical engineering. Their research was supported by the National Science Foundation.

Read more at: http://live.psu.edu/story/36824

This article was featured in Focus on Materials - Winter 2009.