Johns Hopkins Bioengineers Develop Nanoparticles to Deliver Drugs to Brain

Johns Hopkins University researchers say they are one step closer to creating a drug-delivery system that’s flexible enough to overcome key challenges posed by brain cancer and other maladies affecting the brain.

In a report that appears in the Aug. 29 online edition of Science Translational Medicine, the Johns Hopkins team says its bioengineers have designed nanoparticles that can safely and predictably go deep into the brain when tested in rodent and human tissue.

“We are pleased to have found a way to prevent drug-embedded particles from sticking to their surroundings so that they can spread once they are in the brain,” says Justin Hanes, PhD, the Lewis J. Ort Professor of Ophthalmology, who has secondary appointments in chemical and biomolecular engineering, biomedical engineering, oncology, neurological surgery and environmental health sciences, and serves as director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Nanomedicine. For more information, click here to read the full article.