A Nanodroplet Processor for Advanced Microencapsulated Drug Formulations

During this Phase II program we propose to build on the key aspects of the nanodroplet encapsulation technology to demonstrate optimized formulation and encapsulation of protein drugs. The ability of the nanodroplet generator to produce nanoscale drug "containers" with designer characteristics provides us with a distinct advantage in targeting protein containing vesicles to diseased cells and organs. We plan to target cancerous cells and tumors using our engineered drug vesicles, with specifically designed lipid outer layers as well as targeted surface functionalization to improve drug uptake by the cells, reduce toxicity, and otherwise improve safety and efficacy. The optimized vesicles will result in improved stability and enhanced control of pharmacokinetics in both cell lines and animal models.The nanodroplet platform will be scaled up to produce gram quantities of engineered vesicles with a monodisperse size distribution and a target size of 200nm.