Bacterial infections pose a huge concern for human health in terms of increased morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs. Two main issues contribute to render the treatment of some infectious diseases a difficult task: anti-microbial resistance (AMR) and the development of microbial biofilms.The aim of the work described in this thesis is the development of liposomes that, properly functionalized and loaded, could have a potential application in the diagnosis of bacterial infections and in the relative therapy. The chosen strategy to achieve the selective recognition of bacteria by liposomes is based on the decoration of vesicles surface with saccharide moieties that might ascribe to them specificity toward lectins and carbohydrate-receptors located on microbial cells. For what concerns the diagnosis, a further functionalization of the lipid bilayer capable of generating a specific optical response upon the interaction with pathogens is required; to achieve this goal, the chromo-responsive polydiacetylene (PDA) liposomes containing the π-conjugate “ene-yne” backbone were selected as suitable vesicular platform.
Glycosylated liposomes: a potential tool for the detection and treatment of bacterial infections / Mauceri, Alessandro. - (2017 Sep 22).
Glycosylated liposomes: a potential tool for the detection and treatment of bacterial infections
MAUCERI, ALESSANDRO
22/09/2017
Abstract
Bacterial infections pose a huge concern for human health in terms of increased morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs. Two main issues contribute to render the treatment of some infectious diseases a difficult task: anti-microbial resistance (AMR) and the development of microbial biofilms.The aim of the work described in this thesis is the development of liposomes that, properly functionalized and loaded, could have a potential application in the diagnosis of bacterial infections and in the relative therapy. The chosen strategy to achieve the selective recognition of bacteria by liposomes is based on the decoration of vesicles surface with saccharide moieties that might ascribe to them specificity toward lectins and carbohydrate-receptors located on microbial cells. For what concerns the diagnosis, a further functionalization of the lipid bilayer capable of generating a specific optical response upon the interaction with pathogens is required; to achieve this goal, the chromo-responsive polydiacetylene (PDA) liposomes containing the π-conjugate “ene-yne” backbone were selected as suitable vesicular platform.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.