Dr. Elvin Blanco (Houston Methodist Hospital)

Optimal drug transport to diseased sites is hindered by a series of biological barriers – chief among them nonspecific distribution and inadequate accumulation of therapeutics. These obstacles limit efficacious outcomes in diseases ranging from cancer to cardiovascular disease. Nanoparticle-based drug delivery has made enormous advances towards improving the pharmacokinetics and reducing the adverse side effects of chemotherapeutics. Owed primarily to impaired vasculature in tumors that leads to higher site-specific accumulation of drugs and genetic material, recent findings have shown that enhanced vascular permeability due to endothelial dysfunction is also present in cardiovascular and chronic lung diseases. Our objective is to exploit this phenomenon for systemic, nanoparticle-based drug and gene delivery in heart failure, atherosclerosis, and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Local drug delivery strategies are also being explored as a means to overcome transport barriers. Thus, our work also focuses on using the pericardial sac surrounding the heart for sustained nanoparticle drug and gene delivery, as well as localized nanoparticle gene delivery to lungs for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.