The research presented in this thesis focuses on the synthesis of three amphiphilic block copolymer systems containing poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) blocks. The polymer systems were developed for use in biomedical applications. The first of these is a series of poly(ethylene oxide-b-oxazoline) (PEO-b-POX) diblock copolymers for use in the progress towards novel nonviral gene transfer vectors. Poly...

BACKGROUND Hydroxycamptothecin (HCPT) has been shown to have activity against a broad spectrum of cancers. In order to enhance its tissue-specific delivery and anticancer activity, we prepared HCPT-loaded nanoparticles made from poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(gamma-benzyl-L-glutamate) (PEG-PBLG), and then studied their release characteristics, pharmacokinetic characteristics, and anticancer effects...

Background: Magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles are currently one of the important and acceptable magnetic nanoparticles for biomedical applications. To use magnetite nanoparticles for bacteria cell separation, the surface of nanoparticles would be modified for immobilizing of nanoparticles on the surface of bacteria. Functionalization of magnetite nanoparticles is performed by different s...

Chemotherapeutic agents lead to the damage of healthy cells because they react with cells which are dividing at a high rate by inhibiting the DNA synthesis and interfering with the process of cell division. "Therapeutic drug delivery allows for an increase in the efficacy of the chemotherapeutic agent while minimizing the interaction with nontumour sites in the body by controlling the release r...

Most hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) therapies fail to target cancer stem cells (CSCs) and monitor cancer progression or regression. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the possibility of cancer imaging and simultaneously monitoring targeted therapy in a single animal by anti-CD44 antibody-mediated liposomal nanoparticle. In this study, an in situ liver tumor model was applied for therapy ...

BACKGROUND The use of silica coated magnetic nanoparticles as contrast agents has resulted in the production of highly stable, non-toxic solutions that can be manipulated via an external magnetic field. As a result, the interaction of these nanocomposites with cells is of vital importance in understanding their behaviour and biocompatibility. Here we report the preparation, characterisation and...

We have recently shown that during progression to autoimmune diabetes in NOD mice, memory autoreactive regulatory CD8(+) T cells arising from low-avidity precursors can be expanded to therapeutic levels using nanoparticles coated with disease-relevant peptide-major histocompatibility complexes (pMHCs). Here we examine the dynamics of memory autoregulatory CD8(+) T cells specific for islet-speci...

cancer is one of the main causes of mortality in the world which appears by the effect of enviromental physico-chemical mutagen and carcinogen agents. the identification of new cytotoxic drugs with low side effects on immune system has developed as important area in new studies of immunopharmacology. thymoquinone (tq), derived from the medicinal spice nigella sativa (also called black cumin) ex...

Two dimensional fluorescence difference spectroscopy (2D FDS) detects nanoparticle interactions following surface functionalization and biomolecule loading by generating a spectral signature of the fluorescent intensity per excitation and emission wavelengths. Comparing metal oxide nanoparticles revealed a unique spectral signature per material composition. 2D FDS showed to be sensitive to chan...