Synthetic macromolecules can be easily modified to contain a variety of functional elements capable of non-covalently interacting with biological systems. In our laboratories, such non-covalent interactions are being investigated in design of materials with potential applications in gene therapy, tissue engineering, and drug delivery. For gene delivery, our efforts have been focused on the influence of macromolecular architecture on the electrostatic complexation and transfection of plasmid DNA with cationic polyelectrolytes.In tissue engineering materials, our laboratories have employed electrospinning of biologically-derived phospholipids and other surface active agents to produce unique nanofiber scaffolds. Our preliminary efforts in drug delivery are currently aimed at using cell-specific receptors, which typically rely on a combination of non-covalent interactions, to produce materials capable of delivering both low molar mass and macromolecular therapeutics.
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