Authors:

Natafira Suryanata

Date Created:

Not specified

Course Title:

Professor:

Not specified

About Paper:

Systemic drug delivery lacks specificity and control over the timing and concentration of the drug at the target site. Localized delivery addresses this by administering drugs directly at the desired area, with biocompatible hydrogels serving as injectable or implantable platforms. While affinity-based hydrogel systems provide increased control over protein release rates by temporarily binding them to the hydrogel matrix, this model lacks user control over release, requiring re-engineering to alter release profiles. Herein we introduce a system that maintains the altered release rate of affinity-based systems but provides on-demand release through light-triggered external control. This system uses a photocleavable, heterobifunctional ruthenium tether to covalently bind protein cargo to a hydrogel's polymer matrix. Through a three-step, high- yielding synthesis, we made a ruthenium cross-linker containing both an aldehyde for hydrogel attachment and a vinyl sulfone ligand for protein conjugation. We evaluated ligand kinetics with both cysteine and bovine serum albumin (BSA), confirmed protein activity with added thiols, and demonstrated cargo release upon irradiation. This platform offers a versatile, adaptable approach for targeted protein delivery, offering the control that current systems lack. Future work will leverage this system for triggered sequential release of multiple proteins using modified tethers that selectively respond to different colors of visible light.

Source:

University of Oregon / 2026

Topics:

No topics listed

Co-authors:

Natafira Suryanata