Functionalised PEDOT nanoparticles as a bioelectronic platform for drug delivery and imaging

December 3, 2025

Cancer is characterized by the uncontrolled proliferation of abnormal cells, driven by a combination of genetic, environmental, and behavioural factors. Although chemotherapy remains one of the most widely used treatments, its clinical impact is limited by poor selectivity, systemic toxicity, and the frequent development of drug resistance. Smart drug-delivery systems have therefore emerged as promising alternatives, enabling improved specificity and reduced side effects by exploiting materials that respond to external stimuli. Among these, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) stands out as an electrically responsive conductive polymer with strong potential for use in stimulus-triggered therapeutic platforms. In this work, two complementary branches of PEDOT-based nanomaterials were developed. First, commercially available EDOT was used to synthesize PEDOT and PEDOT/CUR nanoparticles for electrically responsive drug-delivery studies. Curcumin was successfully encapsulated; however, electrically triggered release was only partially achieved under the tested conditions. In parallel, EDOT was functionalized with thiol (EDOT-SH) and azide (EDOT-N₃) groups to introduce reactive surface handles for fluorophore conjugation, enabling future fluorescent tracking of the nanoparticles. All PEDOT-derived nanoparticles were synthesized using established polymerization routes and thoroughly characterized in terms of size, morphology, chemical structure, and electrochemical behaviour. Taken together, these results confirm that PEDOT-derived nanoparticles can be synthesized in a biocompatible and chemically versatile manner, enabling tailored surface modifications and laying the groundwork for future electrically responsive therapeutic technologies.

Authors in the community:

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  D

  Danaja Lorenčič

  ist1108412

Supervisors of this institution:

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  P

  Paola Sanjuan Alberte

  ist428762

• 

  T

  Teresa Sofia Araújo Esteves

  ist32441

industrial-biotechnology - Industrial Biotechnology

eng - English

Instituto Superior Técnico