Megan Lord, Professor at UNSW Sydney

Leuchs-Russell-Auditorium, A.1.500, Staudtstr. 2

Location details

Abstract
The emergence of engineered nanoparticles has led to considerable anticipation regarding their potential to drive advancements for a wide range of biomedical applications including drug delivery. However, few nanoparticles have advanced to clinical applications. Key to the biological performance of nanoparticles is their binding to cell surfaces. Regardless of the delivery route, most nanoparticles contact the blood vessel wall on their path to target tissues. The luminal surface of endothelial cells that line blood vessels are covered by a glycocalyx, a complex extracellular matrix rich in anionic glycans. However, the role of the glycocalyx in nanoparticle-cell interactions is often overlooked. This seminar will detail my team’s work in establishing in vitro models the endothelial glycocalyx and how we have used these models to assess interactions with various nanoparticles, including polysaccharides, and polymer and gold nanoparticles. These findings highlight the intricate relationship between nanoparticle surface charge and structural properties in interactions with endothelial cells expressing a glycocalyx, offering important insights into modulating nanoparticle interactions with the blood vessel wall for drug delivery.