Self-Immolative Polymers
Type of Proposal
Oral Presentation
Faculty
Faculty of Science
Faculty Sponsor
Dr. Trant
Proposal
The use of self-immolative polymers to assist in the formation of nanoparticles for the delivery and release of active agents under specific stimuli has been a topic of increasing interest, especially in regards to stimuli-specific drug delivery. Self-immolative polymers are materials that degrade on command, but are stable until triggered. They can be triggered by anything that can break a chemical bond, like light, chemicals, heat, or acid or base. However, extant self-immolative polymers lead to a release of poorly biodegradable compounds upon depolymerization, resulting in unwanted side effects and possible toxicity. Alternatively, the synthesis of biomolecule based self-immolate copolymers synthesized from natural amino-acid monomers such as Lysine, Ornithine, and 1,4-diaminobutyric acid result in the release of more non-problematic and biodegradable compounds which can easily be metabolized by the body. This will reduce the undesirable side effects. Additionally, the structure of these amino acids allows us to control the rate of depolymerization (dependant on the ring size of the cyclic byproduct) and can lead to a slow release of the drug. Furthermore, the use of stimuli-specific cleavable end-caps would only permit self-immolation and drug release under highly distinct conditions, and would allow exceptional physiological site-specific precision. This presentation will discuss our progress towards these systems to date including our synthesis of these fascinating materials, and will also examine other potential applications of stimuli-specific self-immolative polymers for practical purposes other than drug delivery.
Start Date
23-3-2018 10:35 AM
End Date
23-3-2018 11:55 AM
Location
Alumni Auditorium C
Self-Immolative Polymers
Alumni Auditorium C
The use of self-immolative polymers to assist in the formation of nanoparticles for the delivery and release of active agents under specific stimuli has been a topic of increasing interest, especially in regards to stimuli-specific drug delivery. Self-immolative polymers are materials that degrade on command, but are stable until triggered. They can be triggered by anything that can break a chemical bond, like light, chemicals, heat, or acid or base. However, extant self-immolative polymers lead to a release of poorly biodegradable compounds upon depolymerization, resulting in unwanted side effects and possible toxicity. Alternatively, the synthesis of biomolecule based self-immolate copolymers synthesized from natural amino-acid monomers such as Lysine, Ornithine, and 1,4-diaminobutyric acid result in the release of more non-problematic and biodegradable compounds which can easily be metabolized by the body. This will reduce the undesirable side effects. Additionally, the structure of these amino acids allows us to control the rate of depolymerization (dependant on the ring size of the cyclic byproduct) and can lead to a slow release of the drug. Furthermore, the use of stimuli-specific cleavable end-caps would only permit self-immolation and drug release under highly distinct conditions, and would allow exceptional physiological site-specific precision. This presentation will discuss our progress towards these systems to date including our synthesis of these fascinating materials, and will also examine other potential applications of stimuli-specific self-immolative polymers for practical purposes other than drug delivery.