Biography
Katarzyna Krukiewicz is completing her Ph.D from Silesian University of Technology at the Department of pharmaceutical technology. She has published two papers in reputed journals.
Abstract
In the past few years local drug delivery systems became very popular methodsrnof treatment, making this process easier and more effective. Since conductingrnpolymers are extensively studied in the field of biosensors, artificial scaffolds andrnneural probes, they are supposed to be promising materials for controlled drugrndelivery systems. Two most popular conducting polymers exhibitingrnbiocompatibility are polypyrrole (PPy) and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxytiophene)rn(PEDOT). Recent literature reports indicate poly(3,4-ethylenedioxypyrrole)rn(PEDOP) as an ideal candidate as material for biomedical engineering, mainlyrnbecause of its biocompatibility. PEDOP combines the most desirable properties ofrnPPy and PEDOT: it has lower polymerization potential than PEDOT and,rnsimultaneously, is more stable than PPy.rnIn this study, we present one of the first efforts to utilize PEDOP for thernimmobilisation of drugs. Two model drugs have been chosen – quercetin (Que)rnand ciprofloxacin (Cipro). Quercetin is one of flavonoid drug with wide spectrum ofrnactivities. Ciprofloxacin mainly treats bacterial infections caused by Gram-positivernand Gram-negative bacteria.
Biography
Bradley is in the first year of his PhD at Canterbury University in Christchurch, New Zealand.rnHis project involves numerical modelling of biological processes relating to transdermal drugrndelivery. He is supervised by Dr Sid Becker of the Mechanical Engineering Department. Bradleyrnwas awarded an honours degree from Canterbury University at the end of 2014.
Abstract
The primary motivation of this study is to develop a macroscopic model of mass transportrnin electroporated biological tissue in order to determine the cellular drug uptake. The modelrncaptures the influences of both irreversible electroporation as well as the transient resealing ofrnthe cell membrane associated with reversible electroporation. The model attempts to fit thernmicroscopic behaviour of the cell membrane to the macroscopic transport characteristics throughrnan empirically based representation of the bulk tissue electrical conductivity. Two case studiesrnare conducted to illustrate the applicability of this model by comparing transport associated withrntwo electrode arrangements: side-by-side arrangement and the clamp arrangement. The resultsrnshow increased drug transmission to viable cells is possible using the clamp arrangement due tornthe more uniform electric field produced.