Innovations in protein-lipid conjugation and novel technologies for developing protein-based nanodelivery systems to improve the delivery mechanism, efficacy, and bioavailability of bioactives

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The overall vision of Dr. Bandara's proposed research program is to use nanotechnology, material science, and chemistry principles to design novel material platforms by using commonly available protein and lipid polymers for applications in nanodelivery systems with improved functionality, efficacy, and co-delivery potential of bioactives. The global protein market is experiencing rapid growth over the past years, and Canada is exploring the opportunities to become a market leader in protein industry by developing value-added industries. On the other hand, irrespective of their excellent health benefits, bioavailability & efficacy of bioactives are some of the primary concerns nowadays, mainly in nutraceutical applications. Protein-based nanocarriers show promise in improving efficacy and bioavailability; however, poor stability, loading capacity, inability of co-delivery and susceptibility to gastric digestion limits the effective utilization of protein-based nanocarriers. The proposed program will innovatively explore the use protein-lipid conjugation to improve those issues and resulting protein-lipid conjugates (PLC) that will be used for designing nanocarriers with improved functionality. The proposed program is designed to answer fundamental research questions about the properties of biopolymer systems that will improve the therapeutic efficacy & bioavailability of the bioactives, and how to design materials with required properties. The short-term objectives of this discovery program are to 1. Design, fabricate & characterize protein-lipid conjugates (PLC) from model fatty acids and proteins, 2. Adopt the conjugation techniques developed for model compounds to develop PLC using abundantly available food-grade lipids and proteins 3. Engineering PLC-based nanocarriers, including nanoemulsions, powdered nanoemulsions, and hollow solid protein-lipid conjugate nanoparticles (hS-PLCN) using novel techniques and 4. Determine co-delivery efficiency, bioavailability, efficacy, and bioactivity of the PLC-based nanocarriers using in-vitro and in-vivo methods to understand the relationship of nanoparticle structure and material properties on improving bioactivity. A wide array of chemical and physical routes will be used in creating PLC using both model compounds and common protein-lipid sources. The developed PLC will be used for creating a range of nanocarrier systems including nanoemulsions, powdered nanoemulsions via supercritical CO2 assisted drying and hS-PLCN using novel technologies such as supercritical particle formation. This program will be the first of this kind in exploring PLC for developing material platforms with co-delivery potential for bioactives. Successful completion of this program will help to advance the research and commercialization efforts of diet-related bioactives, provide unique opportunities for Canadian protein and nutraceutical industries to use these novel materials for developing next-generation nutraceuticals.