Biomaterials are widely used in numerous medical applications. Chemical engineering has played a central role in this research and development. Polymers as biomaterials, materials and approaches used in drug and protein delivery systems, materials used as scaffolds in tissue engineering, and nanotechnology and microfabrication techniques applied to biomaterials are reviewed.

Advances in Biomaterials, Drug Delivery, and Bionanotechnology

http://www.kannangroup.com/papers/IJP2003.pdf

Drug complexation, in vitro release and cellular entry of dendrimers and hyperbranched polymers

Recent developments include the use of water-swollen, crosslinked biomedical polymers as carriers for the delivery of drugs, peptides and proteins, as targeting agents for site-specific delivery, or as components for preparation of protein or enzyme conjugates. The network structure and the thermodynamic nature of the components of these networks play a key role in their diffusional behavior, molecular mesh size changes (especially in environmentally responsive hydrogels), and the associated molecular stability of the incorporated bioactive agents.

Hydrogels and drug delivery

This article discusses closed-loop blood glucose regulation algorithms that use the intravenous route for insulin delivery to insulin-dependent diabetic patients. Classical control methods and advanced algorithms using implicit knowledge or explicit models (empirical, fundamental, or "gray-box") of the diabetic patient are examined. Current research on characterizing patient variability is presented, in the context of a model predictive controller able to adjust to changes in patient glucose and insulin sensitivity.

The intravenous route to blood glucose control

Chemically controlled closed-loop insulin delivery

The complications of diabetes are thought to arise from poor control of blood glucose concentration because of inadequate secretion of insulin by the pancreas. This has motivated the undertaking of novel therapeutic approaches to improve insulin delivery. In this paper, two approaches are presented: model-based control algorithms for use in implantable insulin pumps, and a novel polymeric device which releases insulin at desirable levels.

Christie M. Dorski

Papers

Control and modeling of drug delivery devices for the treatment of diabetes

Preparation and characterization of glucose-sensitive P(MAA-g-EG) hydrogels

Glucose-responsive, complexation hydrogels