Graphene plays central role in drug delivery experiments
1 min read
There are potentially adverse side effects when a drug is active throughout the body, not just where and when it is needed. Looking to overcome this problem, scientists at the University of Pittsburgh are reporting progress on a new way to deliver medicine in a much more targeted way.
Dr Xinyan Tracy Cui and colleagues note in a paper published in ACS Nano that, in the lab, 'smart' medical implants can release drugs on demand when exposed to various cues, including ultraviolet light and electrical current. The work takes advantage of developments in nanomaterials that can be designed to carry drugs and release them at specific times and dosages.
As part of their work, the researchers have experimented with loading anti cancer drugs on tiny sheets of graphene oxide – said to have features that are useful in drug delivery.
The team incorporated graphene oxide nanosheets into a thin polymer film that can conduct electricity. The sheets were loaded with an antiinflammatory drug and onto an electrode. When stimulated by an electric current, the drug was released consistently and the process could be repeated several hundred times.
By experimenting with the sizes and thicknesses of the graphene sheets, the scientists could change how much drug the nanosheets could carry.
Dr Cui said this approach could be useful in treating epilepsy, for example, where medication could be ready inside the body for release at the onset of a seizure.
