Scientists Engineer Nanoscale Vaults To Encapsulate ‘Nanodisks’ For Drug Delivery
Posted Apr 20 2011 7:35pm
There’s no question, drugs work in treating disease. But can they work better, and safer?
In recent years, researchers have grappled with the challenge of administering therapeutics in a way that boosts their effectiveness by targeting specific cells in the body while minimizing their potential damage to healthy tissue.
The development of new methods that use engineered nanomaterials to transport drugs and release them directly into cells holds great potential in this area. And while several such drug-delivery systems — including some that use dendrimers, liposomes or polyethylene glycol — have won approval for clinical use, they have been hampered by size limitations and ineffectiveness in accurately targeting tissues.
Now, researchers at UCLA have developed a new and potentially far more effective means of targeted drug delivery using nanotechnology.
There’s no question, drugs work in treating disease. But can they work better, and safer?
In recent years, researchers have grappled with the challenge of administering therapeutics in a way that boosts their effectiveness by targeting specific cells in the body while minimizing their potential damage to healthy tissue.
The development of new methods that use engineered nanomaterials to transport drugs and release them directly into cells holds great potential in this area. And while several such drug-delivery systems — including some that use dendrimers, liposomes or polyethylene glycol — have won approval for clinical use, they have been hampered by size limitations and ineffectiveness in accurately targeting tissues.
Now, researchers at UCLA have developed a new and potentially far more effective means of targeted drug delivery using nanotechnology.