Difference between revisions of "Team:Tec-Chihuahua/Model"

From the first moment we made this our project, we repeatedly heard the same question: “how can you make sure AMPs get to bee larvae?” This is a valid and central concern. One of the key elements to our project’s success is that the antimicrobial peptides encapsulated within PLGA nanoparticles reach the bee larvae with enough peptide concentration to inhibit pathogenic bacteria.

In order to measure the final amount of AMPs that will be delivered to each larva, we model the amount of peptide released from the nanoparticles in their path through the insides of the nurse bee and into the jelly fed to larvae.

The model will help us to determine the initial dosage of AMPs necessary to reach their final destination with high enough concentration.

The polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) is a biodegradable and biocompatible polymer that is used for the fabrication of drug delivery devices. PLGA could be used to transport proteins, peptides, and macromolecules such as DNA and RNA.

PLGA is ideal for drug delivery because its degradation can be used to control the drug’s release profile by manipulating the factors involved in it. Some relevant parameters that influence the release are the polymer molecular weight, the ratio of the particle and the drug concentration.

The release behavior of PLGA is given by its degradation which occurs by hydrolysis. The degradation profile is through bulk degradation as a consequence of the water penetration into the particle and the polymer degradation. However, the degradation of water penetrations is way faster than the PLGA degradation.

The release behavior of PLGA is given by its degradation which occurs by hydrolysis. The degradation profile is through bulk degradation as a consequence of the water penetration into the particle and the polymer degradation. However, the degradation of water penetrations is way faster than the PLGA degradation.

The model is based on the diffusion from the antimicrobial peptide in the interior of the PLGA nanoparticle to the exterior of it. Since out peptides will be delivered through PLGA 50:50 nanoencapsulation, we decided to use a simple Frickian diffusion model suggested by previous research^{2, 3, 4} . The diffusion equation can be seen here:

It was first necessary to define the appropriate boundary conditions for the equation. Before receiving the data for the radii range in our nanoparticles, we picked boundary conditions based on a wide range of pre-reported2 diffusion coefficients and radii, as well as time (from 0 to 35 days, far beyond what we need).