Interaction of polymeric particles with lung surfactant

Lung surfactant is a mixture of a variety of phospholipids and proteins. It is present as a lining at the air-water interface of alveoli. Lung surfactant helps in maintaining the structural stability of alveoli and eases the breathing process by maintaining low surface tension at the alveolar interface. When foreign particles are deposited on alveoli they interact with lung surfactant and could inhibit surfactant functions resulting in respiratory diseases. However, these interactions are not well characterized. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of particle surface properties on Infasurf (natural lung surfactant) surfactant function to further understand particle-lung surfactant interactions. This knowledge will aid our understanding on designing nanoparticles for applications in lungs, such as pulmonary drug delivery, where potential toxic effects are a concern.