New Nanogel for Drug Delivery: Self-Healing Gel Can Be Injected into the Body and Act as a Long-Term Drug Depot

February 23, 2015

(Nanotechnology Now) – Scientists are interested in using gels to deliver drugs because they can be molded into specific shapes and designed to release their payload over a specified time period. However, current versions aren’t always practical because [they] must be implanted surgically. To help overcome that obstacle, MIT chemical engineers have designed a new type of self-healing hydrogel that could be injected through a syringe. Such gels, which can carry one or two drugs at a time, could be useful for treating cancer, macular degeneration, or heart disease, among other diseases, the researchers say.