Quality of FDM 3D Printed Medicines for Pediatrics: Considerations for Formulation Development, Filament Extrusion, Printing Process and Printer Design.

3d printing is capable of providing dose individualization for pediatric medicines and translating the precision medicine approach into practical application. In pediatrics, dose individualization and preparation of small dosage forms is a requirement for successful therapy, which is frequently not possible due to the lack of suitable dosage forms. For precision medicine, individual characteristics of patients are considered for the selection of the best possible API in the most suitable dose with the most effective release profile to improve therapeutic outcome.

Surfaces with Dual Functionality through Specific Coimmobilization of Self-Assembled Polymeric Nanostructures.

Coimmobilization of functional, nanosized assemblies broadens the possibility to engineer dually functionalized active surfaces with a nanostructured texture. Surfaces decorated with different nanoassemblies, such as micelles, polymersomes, or nanoparticles are in high demand for various applications ranging from catalysis, biosensing up to antimicrobial surfaces. Here, we present a combination of bio-orthogonal and catalyst-free strain-promoted azide-alkyne click (SPAAC) and thiol-ene reactions to simultaneously coimmobilize various nanoassemblies; we selected polymersome-polymersome and polymersome-micelle assemblies.

Biomimetic Planar Polymer Membranes Decorated with Enzymes as Functional Surfaces.

Functional surfaces were generated by a combination of enzymes with polymer membranes composed of an amphiphilic, asymmetric block copolymer poly(ethyleneglycol)- block-poly(γ-methyl-ε-caprolactone)- block-poly[(2-dimethylamino)ethylmethacrylate]. First, polymer films formed at the air-water interface were transferred in different sequences onto silica solid support using the Langmuir-Blodgett technique, generating homogeneous monolayers and bilayers. A detailed characterization of these films provided insight into their properties (film thickness, wettability, topography, and roughness).

Nanoscience-Based Strategies to Engineer Antimicrobial Surfaces.

Microbial contamination and biofilm formation of medical devices is a major issue associated with medical complications and increased costs. Consequently, there is a growing need for novel strategies and exploitation of nanoscience-based technologies to reduce the interaction of bacteria and microbes with synthetic surfaces. This article focuses on surfaces that are nanostructured, have functional coatings, and generate or release antimicrobial compounds, including "smart surfaces" producing antibiotics on demand.

Expanding the potential of MRI contrast agents through multifunctional polymeric nanocarriers.

MRI is a sought-after, noninvasive tool in medical diagnostics, yet the direct application of contrast agents to tissue suffers from several drawbacks. Hosting the contrast agents in polymeric nanocarriers can solve many of these issues while creating additional benefit through exploitation of the intrinsic characteristics of the polymeric carriers. In this report, the versatility is highlighted with recent examples of dendritic and hyperbranched polymers, polymer nanoparticles and micelles, and polymersomes as multifunctional bioresponsive nanocarriers for MRI contrast agents.

Carbon-based cores with polyglycerol shells - the importance of core flexibility for encapsulation of hydrophobic guests.

Two core-shell nanoparticles with polyglycerol shells and sp carbon cores with different flexibilities (soft dendritic polyethylene and hard nanodiamond) were synthesized, their encapsulation capacities were compared, and their ability to transport into tumor cells was investigated. The nanocarrier with a soft core was superior to the hard one.