CONTRELL · Investigation of a new strategy for the controlled-release of drugs from bioresorbable inorganic matrices

Although extensive research has been carried out in the past few years to develop strategies for controlling the release of highly toxic therapeutic agents (such as cancer drugs) in the body, most drug-delivery systems still produce unsatisfactory results in vivo. The overall goal of this work is to tackle two of the main drawbacks of current devices,1- by favouring the release of the drugs via a well-known mechanism (i.e. the breaking of well-defined bonds which will have been created between the therapeutic molecule and the drug-carrier matrix), and2- by using inorganic drug-carrier matrices selected for their bioresorbability.In this project, the study will focus on a subset of purposely chosen systems (drugs with a phosphonic acid or boronic acid function), in order to reach the following key targets:1- the synthesis and complete structural analysis of materials in which a drug is linked via well-defined (iono)covalent bonds to a bioresorbable inorganic matrix,2- the measurement of the reactivity and stability of these (iono)covalent bonds in vitro, and the understanding of their sensitivity to various parameters (pH, temperature, rate of degradation of the carrier matrix…).In the long term, this work should open the way to new strategies for the rational elaboration of efficient drug-delivery systems.The project is expected to significantly boost the research career of the applicant, by allowing her not only to combine the various skills she has acquired during her PhD and post-doc, but also to acquire new competences in the multidisciplinary field of drug-delivery biomaterials. She will find at the Institut Charles Gerhardt in Montpellier both the scientific expertise and equipment necessary to carry out this work.