Arzi Roni Sverdlov, Sosnik Alejandro, Cohen Noy
Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Nanomaterials Science, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel.
Mechanics of Soft Materials, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel.
Polymers (Basel). 2020 Aug 25;12(9):1912. doi: 10.3390/polym12091912.
Biological gels (bio-gels) are hydrated polymer networks that serve diverse biological functions, which often lead to intentional or unintentional exposure to particulate matter. In this work, we derive a microscopically motivated framework that enables the investigation of penetration mechanisms into bio-gels. We distinguish between two types of mechanisms: spontaneous (unforced) penetration and forced penetration. Using experimental data available in the literature, we exploit the proposed model to characterize and compare between the microstructures of respiratory, intestinal, and cervicovaginal mucus and two types of biofilms. Next, we investigate the forced penetration process of spherical and ellipsoidal particles into a locally quadrilateral network. The proposed framework can be used to improve and complement the analysis of experimental findings in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo. Additionally, the insights from this work pave the way towards enhanced designs of nano-medicines and allow the assessment of risk factors related to the nano-pollutants exposure.
生物凝胶是水合聚合物网络，具有多种生物学功能，这常常导致有意或无意地接触颗粒物。在这项工作中，我们推导了一个基于微观的框架，用于研究进入生物凝胶的渗透机制。我们区分了两种类型的机制：自发（无外力）渗透和强制渗透。利用文献中可用的实验数据，我们运用所提出的模型来表征和比较呼吸道、肠道和宫颈阴道黏液以及两种生物膜的微观结构。接下来，我们研究球形和椭圆形颗粒进入局部四边形网络的强制渗透过程。所提出的框架可用于改进和补充体外、离体和体内实验结果的分析。此外，这项工作的见解为纳米药物的优化设计铺平了道路，并有助于评估与纳米污染物暴露相关的风险因素。
