Projects in the Sirianni Research Group are focused on the development and translation of novel therapeutics for the treatment of pediatric brain tumors. Our approach focuses on encapsulation of drugs within biocompatible and biodegradable nanoparticles, which serve as drug carriers to prolong drug action and target drug delivery to specific tissue sites. In the past, we have developed a number of novel approaches for engineering nanoparticle composition and surface properties to enable central nervous system drug delivery in adult brain cancer and neurodegeneration. More recently, we are focused on developing these systems for intrathecal and intraventricular drug delivery for treatment of brain tumors in children. These approaches are designed to target leptomeningeal metastasis, infiltrative disease, and residual tumor following surgical resection. We have also developed a number of tissue engineering models to study microenvironmental regulation of tumor growth, treatment resistance, and metastasis in the central nervous system. Our current efforts are focused on clinical translation of novel therapeutics.

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