Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Biomaterials are increasingly important in the development of new strategies for the diagnosis and treatment of disease. For example, while many drugs or drug candidates suffer from limitations such as poor solubility, rapid excretion or a lack of specificity for their target, their incorporation into biomaterials can address many of these issues. In an effort to obtain optimal performance, increasing demands are placed on the materials to perform multiple functions such as tissue targeting and ""smart"" release, while at the same time maintaining biocompatibility and biodegradability. The aim of our research program is to use the principles of organic and polymer chemistry to design and synthesize new functional biodegradable polymers, to investigate their assembly into nanoscale structures such as micelles, nanoparticles and vesicles, and to study the biological properties and applications of these materials. More specifically, will we investigate the preparation of nanoparticles from poly(ester amide)s having pendant functional groups. These pendant groups will be used to covalently immobilize drug molecules, thus preventing an undesirable ""burst"" release, and also to impart surfactant properties to the polymer itself, thus enabling spontaneous assembly into nanoparticles. Cascade biodegradable polymers and their assemblies will also be developed. This new class of materials offers the potential for unprecedented control over polymer biodegradation. Finally, polymer vesicles will be explored as model multifunctional assemblies where the membrane and core can be used to encapsulate hydrophobic and hydrophilic moieties respectively while surface functionalization can control their stability and interactions with biological systems. Overall, this research will lead to new tools of widespread interest to the chemical and biomaterials communities, as well as an increased understanding of the effects of chemical structure on the assembly of polymers and their biological properties. In addition, it will pave the way towards new approaches for treating disease and improving quality of life.