NSF Award
0923674
This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).<br/><br/>This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase II project is focused on assessment of our novel siRNA-loaded nanofibrous polyester in a rat carotid artery endothelial cell denudation model, which has been historically used to evaluate the effects of blocking specific genes on arterial healing. The goal of this Phase II proposal is to determine where these siRN-loaded nanofibrous materials can locally release a selected siRNA directly to the implant site and block selected cellular functions within the animal artery that are associated with blood vessel narrowing. Our hypothesis is that selected siRNAs can be incorporated into electrospun nanofibers using our patent-pending proprietary technology. siRNA would then be released from the respective material in a slow, sustained fashion, thereby directing cellular/tissue incorporation and transgene expression. It is anticipated that siRNA-loaded polyester materials will regulate cellular growth in and around the material as compared to untreated nanofibrous materials, thereby preventing blood clotting.<br/><br/>The broader impacts of this research are development of an implantable polyester material that can be used to locally deliver specific siRNA moieties directly at the implant site (i.e. within the artery). There is no other implantable material capable of directly affecting localized cellular function. Thus, this technology when employed as a stent coating or an artificial blood vessel will significantly improve patient outcome after implantation of these materials. Additionally, this type of material could be employed for simple (hernia repair mesh, catheter cuffs) or complex (total implantable heart, ventricular assist devices) devices that would require controlling specific cellular functions.
