What Can Polymer Microspheres Do?

With the development of biotechnology, polymer microspheres have been used in the areas of biological isolation and purification, immunodetection and affinity diagnosis, blood flow measurement, drug carrier and etc.

EPRUI Nanoparticles & Microspheres Co. Ltd. supplies various active microspheres including fluorescent microspheres and magnetic microparticles which have been applied into clinical examination, drug release control, diagnosis of cancer and hepatitis, cell labeling, identification, isolation, culture and tracking as well as radioimmunoassay solid phase carrier and immune adsorption.

Biological macromolecules such as proteins, nucleic acids, sugars and so on each has unique physical and chemical properties. The separation and concentration of macromolecules can be done according to their unique physical and chemical properties in aqueous dispersion. Micron sized gel particles are the most commonly used reagents for separation and concentration. Permeation chromatography is one of the most successful applications.

Through hydrophobic association and electrostatic interaction, submicron polymer microspheres can also be used to purify protein. By covalent binding affinity ligand with microspheres and packed in the column, protein can be purified when the mixture pass through the colum due to affinity.

Nowadays, magnetic nanoparticle is the most typically used method to separate target isolate. In the magnetic field, the target can easily be separated.

Antibody -antigen reaction is most important immune response in human beings. Detections can be made by loading antibody on polymer microspheres to link specific antigen. There are various test methods. Researchers can test the labeled composites or detect after separation of composites. For example, by using the method of TRFIA(time resolved fluoroisnmunoassay), immunodetection can be conducted on the surface of microspheres.

If the volume of the carrier material obviously changes, the reaction level can be detected. This is called the principle of affinity and latex diagnosis. Pro and latex diagnosis is the fastest and most simple immunoassay diagnosis method which has a broad prospect. In fact, the pro-latex microspheres is not just limited to the detection of antigen-antibody but the screening method of high flux drug is also based on this principle.

Cardiac output and regional blood flow is very important to oxygen transportation and absorption. Therefore, it is very necessary to be tested. The radio-labeled polymer microsphere can be used to do the detection. Due to security factors, colored microspheres, fluorescent microspheres and magnetic microspheres and other non-radioactive microspheres were developed.

E.x. Schlensak used fluorescent microspheres to study the arterial perfusion in heart bypass surgery and concluded that this method could not inhibit lung ischemia effectively. Despite ischemic vascular embolization is harmful in most situations, it may also be utilized to reduce the amount of blood loss so that improve the safety factor.

Polymer microsphere plays a very important role in drug delivery. In recent years, scientists have made huge progress in utilizing nano polymer microspheres into controlled and targeted drug release which will make a great contribution on human health.