For cancer chemotherapy, a tumor regression without any surgical resection and severe side effects is greatly preferred to merely slowing down the growth of tumors. Here, we report a formulation composed of irinotecan (IRN) and poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide)-b-poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA-PEG-PLGA). IRN is a clinically used antitumor drug with active and inactive...

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are growth and differentiation factors involved during development in morphogenesis, organogenesis and later mainly in regeneration processes, in particular in bone where they are responsible for osteoinduction. For more than a decade, recombinant human (rh)BMP-2 has been used in the clinic for lumbar spinal fusion at non-physiological high dosages that appear...

Poly (DL-lactide-co-glycolide) polymers were investigated as carriers for the first line antitubercular drug rifampicin. Different formulations of PLG microparticles viz. porous, non porous and hardened exhibited sustained release of rifampicin up to 7 weeks in vitro. However, hardened PLG microparticles exhibited the most sustained release in vivo in different organs up to 6 weeks. In case of ...

Compared with traditional in-vitro cell culture materials, three-dimensional nanofibrous scaffolds provide a superior environment for promoting cell functions. Since nanofibrous scaffolds have nanometer pore sizes, cells are unable to penetrate on their own, so must be incorporated into the scaffold during fabrication to ensure proper cell distribution. In this study, biodegradable and cytocomp...

Convection enhanced delivery (CED) can improve the spatial distribution of drugs delivered directly to the brain. In CED, drugs are infused locally into tissue through a needle or catheter inserted into brain parenchyma. Transport of the infused material is dominated by convection, which enhances drug penetration into tissue compared with diffusion mediated delivery. We have fabricated and char...

Four monomethoxy poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(L-lactide-co-glycolide)(2) (mPEG-P( LA-co-GA)(2)) copolymers were synthesized by ring-opening polymerization of L-lactide and glycolide with double hydroxyl functionalized mPEG (mPEG-(OH)(2)) as macroinitiator and stannous octoate as catalyst. The copolymers self-assembled into nanoscale micellar/vesicular aggregations in phosphate buffer at pH 7.4. D...

Gene transfer methods are promising in the field of gene therapy. Current methods for gene transfer include three major groups: viral, physical and chemical methods. This review mainly summarizes development of several types of chemical methods for gene transfer in vitro and in vivo by means of nano-carriers like; calcium phosphates, lipids, and cationic polymers including chitosan, polyethylen...

Biomimetic scaffolds have been investigated in vascular tissue engineering for many years. Excellent biodegradable materials are desired as temporary scaffolds to support cell growth and disappear gradually with the progress of guided tissue regeneration. In the present paper, a series of biodegradable copolymers were synthesized and used to prepared micro/nanofibrous scaffolds for vascular tis...