antigen delivery projects

  When foreign materials are implanted in the body, there is an inflammatory response to these materials commonly referred to as the foreign body response. A lot of times we hear about the negative effects of the foreign body response (think of implant failure for things like biosensors, stents, etc.), but I am interested in taking advantage of this for disease monitoring. When we think of complicated diseases like multiple sclerosis, disease-specific T-cells are extremely rare in circulation (<1 in 100,000). Therefore, I am interested in loading porous poly(lactide-co-glycolide), PLG, scaffolds with disease-relevant antigens. The porosity of the implant allows immune cells to move into the material, while the antigen delivery boosts recruitment of disease-specific cell populations like T-cells. Having a material that specifically recruits these populations will allow us to diagnose and monitor disease locally in a way that is not currently possible. 

-Sydney Wheeler, 3rd Year Graduate Student, BME