Nitric oxide releasing nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Abstract

After being viewed for many years as noting but a mere environmental pollutant, nitric oxide (NO) is nowadays one of the most studied molecules in biomedical sciences. The chemical nature of NO makes it a key player in the bioregulation of important physiologic processes, such as the vasodilation of blood vessels, and cells comunication. NO is a free radical, it is devoid of charge, it has a small size, is lipophilic, and it diffuses easily in the biological medium crossing most physiologic barriers. Nowaday, it is known that NO is involved in several biological processes, such as the control of the vascular tonus, the inhibition of platelet adhesion, the immune responses, and the wound healing process. As NO controls several physiological functions, deficiencies in its production and/or transport result in pathophysiological states. Thus, there is a great effort on the devepolment of NO-releasing materials, which can be used in several biomedical applications. Recently, a promising strategy that has been used to facilitate the therapeutic use of NO is based on the combination of nanotechnology with NO donors molecules. In this context, the major aim of this project is the preparation of polymeric and metallic NO-releasing nanoparticles for biomedical applications. The development of these new nanostructured materials involve the synthesis of NO-releasing nanoparticles, their physicochemical characterization, kinetic studies of NO release under physiological conditions, toxicological evaluation of the prepared materials and their biomedical applications. This project is aimed to create new strategies for controlled release of NO with a great potential for clinical applications. (AU)