While the design, formulation, and administration of
drug delivery systems vary widely across the
spectrum of drug types, the ultimate goal of
targeted drug delivery is the same - deliver the
ideal concentration of a therapeutic to the site of
disease while minimizing side effects to healthy
cells and tissue. Most modern drug delivery systems
are specifically tailored to deliver a single drug
type or attempt to address only a few of the
difficult problems associated with targeting
therapeutic delivery. Utilizing expertise in
nanotechnology, biopharmaceuticals
and polymer
chemistry, Chikujee has taken a fundamentally
different, bottom-up approach to addressing the most
pressing deficiencies associated with currently
available drug delivery technology. Through the
rational design and molecular surface tailoring of
new polymer materials, Chikujee has developed the
TSDVâ„¢ drug delivery platform
to make
targeted drug delivery a reality, improving the
lives of people who suffer from disease and offering
enhanced product value for our potential
biopharmaceutical partners.
The foundation of the TSDVâ„¢ platform is based on
core-shell nanoparticle technology. Since
drug-loaded nanoparticles typically possess
diameters ranging from 20 - 200 nm, they exhibit
dramatically increased circulation time when
compared to stand-alone drugs due to minimized renal
clearance. This feature of nanoparticles also leads
to selective accumulation in cancerous tissue due to
the enhanced permeation and retention (EPR) effect,
a result of increased permeability to nanoparticles
due to the disorganized nature of the tumor
vasculature.
While simple diblock copolymer micelles are
currently under development for drug delivery
applications, these structures are often unstable
and "fall apart" following injection as a result of
in vivo dilution or interaction with destabilizing
blood components. This instability leads to
premature drug release outside the targeted region,
resulting in minimal therapeutic value and increased
toxicity to healthy cells and tissue. In addition,
polymer micelles and other types of drug carriers
often lack strategies for active cell targeting, a
powerful technique which permits the selective
attachment of the delivery system to diseased areas
in the body using cell-specific ligands located on
the surface of carrier.
In contrast to these simple block copolymer
micelles, the TSDVâ„¢ platform, utilizes a BOSH
monomer that has four different reactive sites
available for customization, where each reactive
group,
of the carrier surface has been tailored to address
the most critical issues facing targeted drug
delivery. These include expanding the range and
efficiency of drug encapsulation, providing greatly
enhanced in vivo solubility and stability, and
targeting therapeutic release specifically in
diseased cells and tissue.
