Margination of micro- and nano-particles in blood flow and its effect on drug delivery.

ABSTRACT: Drug delivery by micro- and nano-carriers enables controlled transport of pharmaceuticals to targeted sites. Even though carrier fabrication has made much progress recently, the delivery including controlled particle distribution and adhesion within the body remains a great challenge. The adhesion of carriers is strongly affected by their margination properties (migration toward walls) in the microvasculature. To investigate margination characteristics of carriers of different shapes and sizes and to elucidate the relevant physical mechanisms, we employ mesoscopic hydrodynamic simulations of blood flow. Particle margination is studied for a wide range of hematocrit values, vessel sizes, and flow rates, using two- and three-dimensional models. The simulations show that the margination prope

SUBMITTER: Muller K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4007071 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature