IIT Mandi researchers developed biodegradable nanoparticles to treat colorectal cancer
- Campus Updates
- 31 Aug, 2022
- 650
These nanoparticles release the drug in response to stimuli that are specific to cancer site only. Researchers have developed biodegradable nanoparticles from renewable resources which can release both hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs having different anticancer mechanisms, thus reducing the dependency on petroleum-based polymers.
The findings of the research have been published in the Journal Carbohydrate Polymers. The research has been led by Garima Agrawal, assistant professor, School of Basic Sciences, and co-authored by her students Ankur Sood and Aastha Gupta from IIT Mandi and Neal Silverman along with his team from the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, United States of America. The research was funded by the Science and Engineering Research Board, Government of India along with IIT Mandi.
Colorectal cancer is a devastating disease leading to increased mortality worldwide and it also causes a heavy financial burden on the healthcare system globally. It is the third most common cancer in men and the second most common in women worldwide. It accounts for 8% of all cancer deaths making it the fourth most common cause of death due to cancer in the world.
Explaining the research, Dr Garima Agrawal, said, “One of the driving interests among the material science and healthcare community performing interdisciplinary work is the development of biodegradable nanoparticles from renewable resources and designing them in such a way that they can release the drug in response to stimuli which are specific to cancer site only.”IIT Mandi researchers have developed redox-responsive chitosan/stearic acid nanoparticles (CSSA NPs) as drug carriers for both curcumin (hydrophobic; a component from turmeric that is used daily in food) and doxorubicin (hydrophilic) drugs delivery targeting colorectal cancer. This approach of combining anticancer drugs having a different mode of anticancer action allows to develop of the systems for cancer therapy with enhanced efficacy.
The researchers at IIT Mandi have developed biodegradable nanoparticles from renewable resources, thus reducing the dependency on petroleum-based polymers. These smart nanoparticles are stable under physiological conditions and degrade at tumor sites in the presence of redox stimuli of cancer cells. These nanoparticles can be used to successfully load and release both hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs having a different anticancer mechanism which can help to improve the treatment efficiency.