Bioresorbable polyelectrolytes for smuggling drugs into cells

Smuggling Taxol into cancer cells

Some cancer cells evade chemotherapy by expressing cell membrane pumps to expel toxins. One such pump is the P-glycoprotein, which exports the widely used chemotherapy compound Taxol as it passes through the membrane. To counter P-glycoprotein efflux, Elena Dubikovskaya et al. modified Taxol’s structure, attaching a peptide that alters the mechanism by which the compound enters cells. The new c...

Smuggling Drugs into the Brain: An Overview of Ligands Targeting Transcytosis for Drug Delivery across the Blood–Brain Barrier

The blood-brain barrier acts as a physical barrier that prevents free entry of blood-derived substances, including those intended for therapeutic applications. The development of molecular Trojan horses is a promising drug targeting technology that allows for non-invasive delivery of therapeutics into the brain. This concept relies on the application of natural or genetically engineered protein...

Models for nuclear smuggling interdiction

We describe two stochastic network interdiction models for thwarting nuclear smuggling. In the first model, the smuggler travels through a transportation network on a path that maximizes the probability of evading detection, and the interdictor installs radiation sensors to minimize that evasion probability. The problem is stochastic because the smuggler’s origin-destination pair is known only ...

Selenium nanoparticles inclusion into chitosan hydrogels act as a chemical inducer for differentiation of PC12 cells into neuronal cells

Background and Objective: Biomaterials and nanomaterials have generated a great opportunity in regenerative medicine. Neurological disorders can result in permanent and severe derangement in motor and sensory functions. This study was conducted to examine the effects of selenium nanoparticles (Se NPs) as a chemical inducer for differentiation of PC12 cells into sympathetic-like neurons characte...

Tobacco Smuggling