Nanocapsule-based ocular therapy
A method of macular disease treatment ( 500 ) may include introducing nanocapsules into a body of a patient ( 502 ). The nanocapsules may be introduced such that the nanocapsules circulate through at least a portion of a body of the patient. A therapeutic substance and a colorant may be encapsulated into the nanocapsules. After a portion of the nanocapsules enters choroidal neovessels of an eye of the patient, the method may include emitting a pulsed laser radiation through a pupil of the eye ( 504 ). Additionally, after a portion of the nanocapsules enters choroidal neovessels of an eye of the patient, the method may include heating the portion of the nanocapsules present in the eye ( 506 ) such that at least a portion of the nanocapsules transfer phase and release the therapeutic substance.
1. A method of delivering
a therapeutic substance to an eve of a patient the method comprising:
introducing nanocapsules into a body of the patient such that at least a portion of the nanocapsules enter an eye of the patient, wherein the nanocapsules encapsulate a therapeutic substance and a colorant; and
emitting pulsed laser radiation through a pupil of an eye of the patient;
wherein the portion of the nanocapsules present in the eye is heated by the pulsed laser radiation, thereby causing at least a portion of the nanocapsules to release the therapeutic substance in the eye,
wherein the pulsed laser radiation has a wavelength in a range of about 500 nanometers (nm) to about 600 nm.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the introducing of the nanocapsules into the body includes injecting the nanocapsules intravenously.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein each nanocapsule includes:
a shell that comprises a temperature-sensitive hydrogel; and
a core that comprises a hydrophobic polymer,
wherein the therapeutic substance is encapsulated within the core, and
wherein the colorant is encapsulated within the core.
4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the emitting of laser radiation through the pupil of an eye of the patient heats the portion of nanocapsules present in the eye to a critical solution temperature (CST) such that the temperature-sensitive hydrogel of the nanocapsule undergoes a phase transition.
5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the critical solution temperature (CST) is between about 38° C. and about 48° C.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the critical solution temperature (CST) is about 45° C.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the colorant has a different optical absorption range from retinal cells of the eye of the patient, wherein a first portion of the pulsed laser radiation is absorbed by the nanocapsules and a second portion of the pulsed laser radiation is absorbed by retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells in the eve of the patient.
8. The method of claim 1 ,
wherein the pulsed laser radiation is emitted for a time in a range from about 0.5 microseconds (μs) to about 2.0 μs.
9. The method of claim 1 ,
wherein the pulsed laser radiation is emitted for a time of about 1.7 microseconds (μs), and/or
wherein the pulsed laser radiation has a wavelength of about 527 nanometers (nm).