PLGA and PLA-PEG-COOH from PolySciTech used in development of nanoparticles for treating fetal lungs against cystic fibrosis

 

Cystic fibrosis and other diseases which affect the lungs starting from birth are often difficult to treat and may be fatal. Improvements in technology now make it possible to potentially treat a fetus in-utero even prior to birth as a therapy for these diseases. Recently, researchers at Yale University used PLGA (AP081) and PLA-PEG-COOH (AI030) from PolySciTech (www.polyscitech.com) to create nanoparticles for treating cells in fetal lung tissue in-utero. This research holds promise to improve therapies against congenital lung diseases. Read more: Ullrich, Sarah J., Mollie Freedman-Weiss, Samantha Ahle, Hanna K. Mandl, Alexandra S. Piotrowski-Daspit, Katherine Roberts, Nicolas Yung et al. "Nanoparticles for Delivery of Agents to Fetal Lungs." Acta Biomaterialia (2021). https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1742706121000520

“Abstract: Fetal treatment of congenital lung disease, such as cystic fibrosis, surfactant protein syndromes, and congenital diaphragmatic hernia, has been made possible by improvements in prenatal diagnostic and interventional technology. Delivery of therapeutic agents to fetal lungs in nanoparticles improves cellular uptake. The efficacy and safety of nanoparticle-based fetal lung therapy depends on targeting of necessary cell populations. This study aimed to determine the relative distribution of nanoparticles of a variety of compositions and sizes in the lungs of fetal mice delivered through intravenous and intra-amniotic routes. Intravenous delivery of particles was more effective than intra-amniotic delivery for epithelial, endothelial and hematopoietic cells in the fetal lung. The most effective targeting of lung tissue was with 250nm Poly-Amine-co-Ester (PACE) particles accumulating in 50% and 44% of epithelial and endothelial cells. This study demonstrated that route of delivery and particle composition impacts relative cellular uptake in fetal lung, which will inform future studies in particle-based fetal therapy. Keywords: Fetal Therapy Lung targeting Biodegradable nanoparticles Biodistribution”