Microemulsion-based Nanoencapsulates of the Anticancer Drugs

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to develop temperature-sensitive nanoparticles to protect drugs from degradation in a targeted drug delivery system. Several important pharmaceutical compounds have low solubility and short half-life in the aqueous phase. As a result, significant portions of the therapeutic agents hydrolyze during formulation or in the blood before reaching the required site. Nanotechnology and microemulsion technology provide a novel approach to overcome these limitations. In this project, a model therapeutic agent, an anticancer drug, has been chosen for the development of an effective formulation. Microemulsion will eliminate hydrolysis of the therapeutic agent and also provide thermodynamically stable nano-size encapsulates for further development of the temperature-sensitive release characteristics of the end product. These nanoencapsulates will circulate in the blood for the long time and therapeutic agent can be delivered at the site of interest (tumor cells) by increasing temperature of that site with the help of a laser. The commercial applications of this project are in the area of pharmaceutical drug delivery.