Modeling a drug delivery system based on acoustic waves

הרקע לפרויקט:

Drug delivery systems are engineered technologies for targeted delivery and/or controlled release of therapeutic agents. Drug delivery systems that respond to external stimuli have a great research interest, as they enable the pulsatile release of drugs, according to external alterations. Many physical and chemical stimuli can be used as triggers, such as temperature, pH, light, electric fields, magnetic fields, osmotic pressure, and ultrasound (US). The US attracts great attention, due to its many advantages: absence of ionizing radiations, low cost, ease of operation, and the ability to transmit energy to precise locations.

מטרת הפרויקט:

The project goals are to develop a drug delivery system which triggers by acoustic waves and examine the interaction between the acoustic force and an organ.
The student will model a drug delivery system based on external acoustic triggering. They will simulate theoretically and examine experimentally the effect of acoustic waves in flow, mimicking the behavior inside a live organ.

תכולת הפרויקט:

In order to examine how acoustic forces interact with an organ, the penetration of the waves through different tissues, and the effect at the cellular level, the student will model flow-acoustic interaction, with the simulation software COMSOL.
First, they will simulate flow-acoustic interaction in a fluidic system, and later in a model of an organ. In the second semester, the student will examine experimentally the effect of acoustic waves in a fluidic system in the lab.

קורסי קדם:

• פזיולוגיה כמותית
• דימות רפואי

מקורות:

1. Kim, H. J.; Matsuda, H.; Zhou, H.; Honma, I. Ultrasound-Triggered Smart Drug Release from a Poly(Dimethylsiloxane)- Mesoporous Silica Composite. Advanced Materials 2006, 18 (23), 3083–3088.
2. Cohen, S.; Sazan, H.; Kenigsberg, A.; Schori, H.; Piperno, S.; Shpaisman, H.; Shefi, O. Large-scale acoustic-driven neuronal patterning and directed outgrowth. Scientific Report 2020, 10.
3. A. Stewart, S.; Domínguez-Robles, J.; F. Donnelly R.; Larrañeta, E. Implantable Polymeric Drug Delivery Devices: Classification, Manufacture, Materials, and Clinical Applications. Polymers 2018, 10, 1379.
4. Ciancia, S., Cafarelli, A., Zahoranova, A., Menciassi, A., Ricotti, L. Pulsatile Drug Delivery System Triggered by Acoustic Radiation Force. Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol. 2020, 8.