In the past years, the controlled drug delivery became a popular topic in the medical and biomedical fields. The carrier systems in nano size like nanoparticles, nanofibers were used a lot for designing and developing new systems for more controlled and sustained drug delivery to body. A material for the human body has to be compatible and degradable for getting rid of cytotoxic effects. To achieve this goal, synthetic and natural polymers were using for developing a system which can mimic the body response in particular tissue. However, the mimicking the body exactly the same way was challenging for the professions like tissue engineering and biomedical engineering. The characteristics of the biomaterials must be chosen according to the tissue which focused on. For example, the tissues if the human body composed of similar cells and their extracellular matrix which surrounds the cells, therefore, some of them has electricity like cardiovascular, neural and skin tissue. To have ideal system for these types of conductive body parts, the materials also has to respond the internal or external electrical stimuli.
On the other hand, the emerging problem of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a huge and significant global health challenge, which needs novel approaches for conventional antimicrobial therapies in biomedicine and biomedical applications. One of the conventional methods of antimicrobial drug therapies is antibiotic treatment when an infection exists in human body. However, as a result of several repetitions of antibiotic treatments, AMR arises when bacteria and other pathogens evolve mechanisms to withstand the effects of antibiotic drugs that once killed them or inhibited their growth, leading to infections that are increasingly difficult to treat. Therefore, traditional antibiotics are not effective as much as before, requiring finding for novel drug delivery mechanisms that can overcome these challenges and improve the effect of existing treatments.
The popular strategy to overcome to this issue is the design and application of smart drug delivery by nano-carriers, which is offering an elaborate and targeted approach to drug delivery nowadays. Among these, since also the particular tissues have electrical stimuli, electro-responsive polymer-based nanocarriers is an emerging system that as a promising platform due to their ability to control drug release in response to electrical stimuli. This technology takes advantage of polymers’ particular properties that respond to external electric fields, allowing for precise time and location control over the release of therapeutics.
This study mainly investigates surface-functionalized polymer-based nanocarriers that are electro-responsive and their design as well as application for delivery of antimicrobial agents. This research plan aims to provide an inclusive summary of what has been done about this field and possible future directions towards creating advanced drug (or substitutes of the drugs) carriers that will fight bacteria resistant to antibiotics.
And in these studies, the role of industrial property in driving innovation and its protection will play a key role. Also related aspects such as the Bolar Clause and exceptions to the use of patented products.
Article by Merve Gül PhD Student and researcher who collaborated with PONTI & PARTNERS through the NanoRemedi programme.
