A system is disclosed for delivery of a therapeutic agent to a site in mucosal tissue or to the skin of a patient. The system includes a porous mucoadhesive, freeze-dried matrix formed by a composition including chitosan in an aqueous salt solution of a chloride salt of a monovalent cation. The system further includes a plurality of chitosan microparticles having an average diameter between 500 nm and 2000 nm and comprising a therapeutic agent.

A phosphorous compound such as STMP is used as a cross-linking agent while making a starch nanoparticle with a bisphosphonate drug in an emulsion process. Negative charge of the nanoparticle is optionally reduced or reversed by adding cations and/or cationizing the starch optionally while forming the nanoparticles. Anionic active agents, such as a bisphosphonate, are optionally incorporated into the nanoparticle during the formation process. For example, a bisphosphonate salt can be added, which promotes the crosslinking reaction while also providing bisphosphonate in the nanoparticle. The retention of both calcium and bisphosphonate in the nanoparticle is improved when both salts are used. Alternatively, the nanoparticle may be used without added calcium. The nanoparticles may be useful for the treatment of osteoporosis or other skeletal disorders or cancer.

From diagnostic imaging to drug delivery, nanoparticles have found a tremendous variety of uses across fields. Often, when designing these nanoscale constructs, the two most important criteria are particle size and core loading. For example, small particles below 100 nm can have many advantages for drug delivery—including improved specificity to tumors through the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect. Likewise, higher loading nanoparticles translate very well to more effective drug delivery and cancer imaging—allowing for lower dosage and reduced costs. Traditional formulations of nanoparticles using drug absorption or precipitation methods generally struggle to obtain >50% loading. Disclosed herein is a precipitation process allowing for production of stable particles at very high core loading by taking advantage of different time scales while maintaining biologically relevant sizes. New mixing designs allow for the separation of the precipitation and stabilization steps to generate these high loading nanoparticles.

The present invention relates to a polymer composite for ultrasound-based cancer immunotherapy, which comprises an peroxalate derivatives, and a preparation method thereof. The polymer composite according to the present invention is a structure in which the peroxalate derivatives are encapsulated in an amphipathic polymer compound in which a biocompatible polymer and a sonosensitizer are combined. The peroxalate derivatives produce free electrons and carbon dioxide (CO.sub.2) by reaction with a high concentration of hydrogen peroxide (H.sub.2O.sub.2) in cancer tissue, the generated electrons raise the energy level of the sonosensitizer in the polymer composite to increase the amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, thereby exhibiting an effect of increasing the death rate of cancer cells. In addition, by ultrasound treatment, immunogenic cell death (ICD) is induced due to the cavitation effect of the produced CO.sub.2, so molecules capable of activating immune cells in cancer cells are released without damage to induce an immune response to cancer. Therefore, the polymer composite according to the present invention is expected to be effectively used as an ultrasound-based cancer immunotherapeutic agent.

Methods and compositions described herein use polysaccharide nanoparticles (or polysaccharide-coated nanoparticles) to retain and deliver unaltered therapeutic agents to sites of disease. The polysaccharide nanoparticles are non-covalently associated with the unaltered therapeutic agent. The polysaccharide is able to retain cargo (drugs, diagnostics, etc.) without chemical modification of the agent. The nanoparticle maintains its association with the agent through non-covalent interactions but releases its agent in response to changes in the microenvironment, e.g., at the site of cancer cells or cancer tissue.

This disclosure provides particles that are suitable for remotely-triggered therapy for cancer and microbial infection. In an embodiment, this disclosure provides a particle heater comprising a carrier admixed with a material that interacts with an exogenous source; wherein the material absorbs and converts the energy from the exogenous source into heat, then the heat travels outside the particle heater to induce localized hyperthermia at a temperature sufficient to selectively kill unwanted cells, and further wherein the particle heater structure is constructed such that it passes the Extractable Cytotoxicity Test.

Provided herein is a pharmaceutical composition comprising at least one isoflavonoid. Also provided herein are methods of treating cancer, sensitizing cancer cells, and inducing apoptosis in cancer cells by administering such compositions.

The present disclosure generally relates to various cannabinoid compositions, including cannabinoid nanoparticle dispersions, processes for preparing these compositions, and methods of using these compositions.

This disclosure relates to nanoparticles for preventing, treating and reversing atherosclerosis.

The present invention includes compositions and methods for making and using a rapid dissolving, high potency, substantially amorphous nanostructured aggregate for pulmonary delivery of tacrolimus and a stabilizer matrix comprising, optionally, a polymeric or non-polymeric surfactant, a polymeric or non-polymeric saccharide or both, wherein the aggregate comprises a surface area greater than 5 m.sup.2/g as measured by BET analysis and exhibiting supersaturation for at least 0.5 hours when 11-15-times the aqueous crystalline solubility of tacrolimus is added to simulated lung fluid.