Noncovalent intracellular drug delivery of hydrophobic drugs on Au NPs

Abstract

The successful delivery of hydrophobic drugs to cellular targets continues to present challenges to the pharmaceutical industry. The advances made by nanotechnology have generated new avenues for selectively loading, delivering, and targeting these drugs to their biological targets without compromising efficacy. Here, we describe how gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) functionalized with polyethylene glycol (PEG) can be evaluated for the delivery of hydrophobic drugs in aqueous systems. Specifically, we describe Au NP synthesis, ligand exchange, and delivery evaluation at-the-bench for screening of potential drug candidates. © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013.