Branched PEGylation as a strategy to overcome the mucus barrier to aerosolized nanomedicine

Delivery of aerosolized therapeutics to the lungs is severely limited by the mucus barrier. Nanoparticles often get trapped in the mucus mesh and cleared from the airways before they can render therapeutic benefit. To address this, nanoparticles can be coated with polyethylene glycol (PEG) to enhance their penetration through the mucus barrier. While linear PEG is conventional, we have recently investigated how PEG structure and branching impacts nanoparticle mobility through the extracellular matrix¹. We now turn our focus to the effect of PEG branching on aerosolized nanoparticle delivery.