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Prof. Molly Shoichet
University Professor,
Pamela & Paul Austin Chair in Precision and Regenerative Medicine,
Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry,
University of Toronto, Canada
Abstract:
Colloidal drug aggregates have led to both false positives in enzyme-based drug screens and false negatives in cell-based screens. To turns these lemons to lemonade, we wondered if we could harness these very high content drug nanoparticles to achieve enhanced delivery. Using fulvestrant, a breast-cancer drug and a “good” aggregator, we stabilized its colloids with excipients and proteins to enhance cell uptake and modified them with ionizable groups to enhance endosomal escape. We then replaced ionizable lipids with ionizable fulvestrant molecules in lipid nanoparticles and delivered both RNA and drug in one formulation. We demonstrated both gene knockdown of a non-druggable target with siRNA delivery against cyclin E1 and cytostatic effects of fulvestrant. In parallel studies, we wondered if we could formulate soluble drugs like timolol into colloidal drug aggregates for sustained release. One timolol-palmitate formulation showed slow release in vitro over a month and efficacy in vivo in rodents. These findings highlight the potential of colloidal aggregates in two disease areas (breast cancer and glaucoma) and suggest broader impact across various diseases in the future.
Bio:
Prof. Molly Shoichet is University Professor, a distinction held by less than 2% of the faculty, the inaugural Pamela & Paul Austin Chair in Precision and Regenerative Medicine, and Scientific Director of Precision Medicine (PRiME) and BioHubNet at the University of Toronto. She served as Ontario‘s first Chief Scientist in 2018. She has published 850+ papers, patents, and abstracts, given 600 lectures worldwide, and graduated 300+ researchers. Her research is focused on drug and cell delivery strategies in the central nervous system (brain, spinal cord, and retina) and 3D hydrogel culture systems to model cancer and colloidal drug aggregates. She co-founded four spin-off companies and is actively engaged in translational research and science outreach. She is the recipient of many prestigious distinctions, including Canada’s top prize in science - NSERC Herzberg Gold Medal, Fellow of the Royal Society (UK), Fellow of the National Academy of Engineering (US), and Fellow of all three of Canada’s National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Health Sciences.
Details
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| Venue: |
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Seminar Room 5,
6/F, 3 Sassoon Road,
Pokfulam,
Hong Kong SAR, China
All are welcome
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