About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
MS&T25: Materials Science & Technology
|
| Symposium
|
2025 Undergraduate Student Poster Contest
|
| Presentation Title |
SPU-9: Evaluation of Antioxidant-Loaded Nanoparticles in PEG-Based Hydrogel for Post-Operative Ocular Care |
| Author(s) |
Leah Danish, Meghal Keskar, George Liu, Katelyn E. Swindle-Reilly |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Leah Danish |
| Abstract Scope |
Over 225,000 vitrectomies are performed annually in the United States, extracting the native vitreous humor from the eye due to age-related degradation and often replacing it with silicone oil. Silicone oil expedites the diffusion of oxygen to the lens, which can lead to cataract formation. This study explores antioxidant-loaded nanoparticles in a PEG-based hydrogel to combat increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) post-vitrectomy. The nanoparticles were synthesized via an emulsion and loaded with 10mM Glutathione, 2mM Ascorbic Acid, 2mM Ergothioneine, and combinations of Glutathione/Ascorbic Acid and Glutathione/Ascorbic Acid/Ergothioneine. The nanoparticles were concluded to be noncytotoxic and showed a statistically significant reduction in ROS when applied to human retinal pigment epithelial cells. All nanoparticle-loaded hydrogels had viscoelastic and optical properties that closely mimicked the native vitreous when 2mg of each molar concentration of antioxidant was suspended in a 2.7% poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) hydrogel. Future work will analyze release profiles and injectability. |