Date of Award

August 2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Bioengineering

Committee Member

Naren Vyavahare

Committee Member

Christopher Carsten III

Committee Member

William Richardson

Committee Member

Ken Webb

Abstract

Vascular calcification is a disease associated with the cardiovascular system in which minerals (i.e. Calcium Phosphate) are deposited into the walls of arteries, veins, and valves of the heart. Although low amounts are common in most individuals, abnormally high deposition of these minerals, specifically calcium salts, reduces vascular elasticity and hardens the artery. Medial arterial calcification (MAC) occurs when minerals diffuse through the artery into the medial layer of the arterial wall. MAC causes hemodynamic disturbances by reducing elasticity in the artery and therefore hardens the artery. MAC can be intensified in combination with other diseases such as diabetes or chronic kidney disease (CKD). Specifically, patients with CKD have in increased risk of cardiovascular diseases and are more likely to die due to cardiovascular diseases than end stage renal failure. Current treatments are more preventative and do not attempt to remove mineral deposition. In an attempt to remove mineral deposition, chelation therapy offers a unique approach to remove it, however, systemic delivery may induce hypocalcemia and bone resorption. Ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) loaded nanoparticles can offer a site-specific therapy to remove the mineral deposition found in the medial layer of an artery. This project attempts to create an EDTA loaded human serum albumin nanoparticles and attempts to remove vascular calcification in a CKD adenine mouse model.

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