Disease Context & Challenges - Glioblastoma has a poor prognosis, with fewer than 5% of patients surviving 5 years post-diagnosis due to the blood-brain barrier hindering chemotherapy delivery [1] - Neuro HIV affects up to 50% of people living with HIV due to the inability of anti-retroviral therapies to cross the blood-brain barrier and suppress viral replication in the brain [1] Technology & Approach - The research focuses on using red blood cells as a natural transport mechanism to deliver drugs across the blood-brain barrier [1] - Ionic liquids are used to coat nanoparticles, facilitating their attachment to red blood cells for transport [1] - Nanoparticles are designed to protect the drug cargo and the body from potential toxicity [1] Experimental Results - In vivo experiments showed that ionic liquid-coated nanoparticles achieved a 46% brain penetration rate, significantly higher than the 1% achieved by nanoparticles without ionic liquid coating [2] - Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy confirmed the distribution of anti-retroviral drugs throughout the brain tissue after delivery via ionic liquid-coated nanoparticles [2] Future Directions - The technology has the potential to treat and potentially cure diseases beyond cancer and HIV, including mental health conditions, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's [2] - Future applications include delivering molecules that harvest light to eradicate tumors, as well as biological molecules like enzymes or gene therapies [2]