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Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1535-9804

AccessType

Open Access Dissertation

Document Type

dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Degree Program

Chemistry

Year Degree Awarded

2023

Month Degree Awarded

September

First Advisor

Vincent Rotello

Second Advisor

Michael Knapp

Third Advisor

Eric Strieter

Fourth Advisor

Ashish Kulkarni

Subject Categories

Nanomedicine

Abstract

Bioorthogonal chemistry has emerged as a promising strategy for regulating bioprocesses through abiotic reactions. Bioorthogonal unmasking reactions mediated by transition metal catalysts (TMCs) present a powerful tool for biomedical applications due to their ability to generate therapeutic agents in situ, minimizing off-target effects. However, the direct application of TMC-mediated reactions in a biological environment poses challenges due to limited water solubility and biocompatibility of these catalysts. My Ph.D. research focused on encapsulating TMCs into polymer nanoparticles to obtain bioorthogonal nanocatalysts. These nanoscaffolds solubilize and stabilize hydrophobic catalyst molecules while preserving catalytic activity and stability in complex biological media. Furthermore, by varying their structure design and/or formulation strategies, these nanocatalysts provided enhanced biocompatibility while enabling controlled drug release for imaging and therapeutic applications.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.7275/35932699

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License

Available for download on Sunday, September 01, 2024

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