Conventional delivery systems for therapeutic agents are administered orally and are designed to provide immediate release of the payload for rapid absorption. Drug delivery systems (DDS) aim to provide controlled and targeted drug release over extended periods of time, therefore maximising therapeutic efficiency. A model DDS would allow control of the dosage, timing, duration and site of drug release resulting in delivery of the therapeutic agent in a remote and non-invasive manner.
A range of stimuli can be used to trigger drug release but electro responsive units are common in biological systems therefore the utilisation of electrical stimulus for drug delivery offers little disruption to the mild conditions required for normal function. Electroactive polymers (EAP’s) are a class of stimuli responsive compounds which are currently being explored for their responsiveness to electrical stimulus and optical properties. It is by the mechanism of charge balance that the application of an electric current can be used to release a therapeutic agent. We aim to synthesise and characterise a library of biodegradable electroactive polymers to screen for use as drug delivery tools. We are particularly interested in developing species from renewable feedstocks such as plant extracts and food waste. We have concluded the development of 5 new compounds as drug delivery systems which have demonstrated the ability to provide controlled release of DMP over a 30 minute period. These systems were developed from renewable feedstocks and PCL forming biocompatible and biodegradable systems.