Nanomedicines provide considerable opportunities to alter the biological behaviour of active pharmaceutical ingredients. A current and growing medical challenge is the treatment of chronic conditions; within Europe, chronic diseases are currently the leading cause of mortality and morbidity. A significant factor in the management of chronic disease is the long-term nature of the treatment. Unfortunately, patient adherence is typically poor within long-term disease patient populations, with only about 50% of patients adhering to their treatment regimes. Poor adherence can be addressed by replacing oral doses with long acting formulations. We have designed a nanomedicine that works as an injectable hydrogel system to give a long-acting drug delivery implant. This system is based on the colloidal assembly of responsive nanogels. In our system, the utilisation of synergistic dual-stimuli responsive materials means that two stimuli, both heating to body temperature and physiological ionic strength are required as the trigger for implant formation, ensuring that the implant will only form upon injection into the tissue. This talk will cover our progress on developing our system towards preclinical studies.
Bio-
Dr. Tom McDonald is a Reader in Sustainable Materials within the Departments of Materials and Chemistry at the University of Manchester. He holds the positions of Research Area Lead for Chemical Materials Design at the Henry Royce Institute and Head of Sustainability at the School of Natural Sciences. With a PhD from the University of Manchester, Tom began his academic career as a lecturer at the University of Liverpool, before returning to Manchester. His research focuses on the development of sustainable colloids, polymers, and plastics, employing innovative approaches in materials design and characterisation. Tom's research group is particularly engaged in the study of polymer colloids, concentrating on the encapsulation and delivery of actives via organic nanoparticles and the impact of environmental nanoplastics. Their work on plastics recycling aims to understand and improve the mechanical recycling processes to enhance the quality of recycled plastics and encourage their broader use.
To date, Tom has authored over 70 papers and has been an investigator on grants totalling more than £8.5 million from various funding bodies, including the EPSRC and Innovate UK. This substantial funding underscores his dedication to advancing sustainability in materials science.