| Enhancement of Aerosol Drug Delivery Using Surfactants |
Some
diseases in the lung close or constrict
airway passages. When this happens, the
aerodynamics that normally carry aerosol
drugs to the site of the disease are
inhibited and the drug does not reach
the diseased part of the lung airways.
By adding surfactant to the aerosol formulation,
Marangoni stresses are set up on the
lung airway wall. These stresses drive
Marangoni flows that transport the drug
along the airway walls to the diseased
site. We need to determine the properties
of the aerosol formulation that will
optimize the Marangoni driven transport.The
student will use optical microscopy observations
to quantify the Maragoni driven flows
on mucus surfaces as drops of surfactant
formulations are placed on the mucus
surface. The structure and interfacial
properties of the formulation will be
systematically varied to determine which
formulation produces the greatest spreading
across the surface. |
|
|
|
|
