Antonela Soledad Stagnoli

Title: Hydrogel dermal patch as a support matrix for local drug delivery

Investigator: Antonela Soledad Stagnoli (Visiting PhD student, Nat. University of Rio Cuarto, Argentina)
Supervisor: Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini

This project investigates the design of a novel and efficient topical drug delivery systemfor the treatment of chronic diseases. Such matrices should be less invasive, biocompatible and physically, chemically and biologically resistant in order to overcome limitations of current systems for drug administration, such as instability in aqueous solution or non-specific systemic distribution that decreases efficacy and bioavailability to cells and target tissues. Oxidized alginate (ADA) hydrogel [1] is being considered as a matrix, which is loaded with nanosystems in order to increase permeation potential, to control transportation of drugs and to protect drug inactivation.

[1] S. Reakasame and A. R. Boccaccini, Oxidized Alginate-Based Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering Applications: A Review, Biomacromolecules, 2018, 19 (1), pp 3–21.