Technology
Mesoscale nanoparticles (MNP) are ~400 nm in diameter and composed of well-characterized polymers – poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) conjugated to polyethylene glycol (PEG) – that have been approved previously for human use in other products. Following injection into mice, approximately 26-fold more MNPs localize in the kidneys versus in any other organ – and these constructs release their drug payload over multiple days or weeks.
Key advantages of MNPs include:
- Simple, size-based kidney-targeting mechanism
- Applicable to a wide range of therapeutic payloads
- Small molecules (demonstrated)
- DNA/RNA (demonstrated)
- Peptides (demonstrated)
- Proteins/antibodies (theoretical)
- Ability to “tailor” the drug release characteristic to match the disease being addressed
- Nanoparticles of similar polymer composition have been successfully scaled up by others
- Efficacy demonstrated in multiple animal models using various chemical classes of drugs
