Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 6
Membrane-Based Nanotechnology
and Drug Delivery
6.1 Introduction
Can we track life's molecular processes within a living cell? Observing all its
organelles, biomolecules, and even individual chemical species in the cellular envi-
ronment is rapidly becoming possible in real time and with ever-increasing spatial
resolution. This will help us to better understand the numerous mechanisms which
allow life to emerge and to continue within the organism so that it behaves like
a coherent whole. Moreover, environmental assaults, pathological changes, or any
manifestations of biological disorder inside cells require sometimes prompt and at
other times slow repair processes for life to endure and continue. Over the past sev-
eral centuries, pharmacology has developed medicinal means to enable and assist
patients to recover from both specific and non-specific diseases and health problems.
Most of these medicines are destined to eventually find their way inside the cellular
environment, where needed, to exert their action. A rather new area of technology in
the service of pharmacology is called 'targeted drug delivery', and it is dedicated to
improvement in the delivery of certain drugs to their target organs. Pharmaceutical
companies and research laboratories in academia have been investing in this sector
heavily, due to its early promise. Encouraging advances in specific areas, especially
in regard to the outer cellular regions, have been made, but no considerable progress
has so far been seen regarding the issue of drug delivery into specific sections or
targets in a cellular interior environment. Most of the infectious and chronic diseases
have origins inside cells, especially due to aberrations in nucleic acids, mitochon-
dria, and other organelles. It is generally recognized that cancer, Alzheimer's disease,
and a host of chronic diseases of the old age are largely incurable diseases causing
a heavy burden on the health systems of individual countries. Unfortunately, enor-
mous investment in medical research into these diseases has so far been producing
surprisingly minimal tangible results. Paradoxically, while there are many therapeu-
tic agents which can cure many specific diseases, this is only possible if those agents
can be delivered to the correct organ, avoiding non-specific delivery to other organs
in the vicinity or elsewhere in the body. Lack of proper targeting commonly results in
the failure of such drugs in clinical trials, due to the adverse side effects they produce.
Search WWH ::
Custom Search