Inhalation is gaining increasing acceptance as a convenient, reproducible, and non-invasive method of drug delivery to the lung tissue and/or the systemic circulation. However, sustained drug release following inhalation remains elusive, due in part to the lack of appropriate materials designed specifically for use in the lungs to control the release of bioactive compounds. To address this problem, we have synthesized a new family of ether-anhydride copolymers composed entirely of FDA-approved monomers, including polyethylene glycol (PEG). Sebacic acid, a hydrophobic monomer, was copolymerized with PEG in order to produce water-insoluble polymers capable of providing continuous drug release kinetics following immersion in an aqueous environment. Various amounts of PEG (5-50% by mass) were incorporated into the backbone of the new polymers to allow tuning of particle surface properties for potentially enhanced aerosolization efficiency and to decrease particle clearance rates by phagocytosis in the deep lung. The preparation of large porous particles with these new polymers was systematically approached, utilizing central composite design, to develop improved particle physical properties for deep lung delivery. Microparticles containing model drugs were made with sizes suitable for deposition in various regions of the lung following inhalation as a dry powder. Due to such properties as surface erosion (leading to continuous drug release profiles), erosion times ranging from hours to days (allowing control over drug delivery duration), and ability to incorporate up to 50% PEG in their backbone, these new systems may also find application as "stealth" carriers for therapeutic compounds following intravenous injection.
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science
9
10%
Medicine and Dentistry
9
10%
Other
14
16%
Unknown
17
20%
Attention Score in Context
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 7. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 18 February 2025.
All research outputs
#6,846,736
of 32,056,643 outputs
Outputs from Biomaterials
#3,774
of 12,782 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#15,099
of 70,434 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Biomaterials
#24
of 66 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 32,056,643 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done well and is in the 78th percentile: it's in the top 25% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 12,782 research outputs from this source. They typically receive more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 7.6. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 69% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 70,434 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done well, scoring higher than 78% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 66 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 63% of its contemporaries.
