Mihaela STEFAN
Mihaela C. Stefan received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering and Ph.D. in Chemistry from Politehnica University Bucharest, Romania. She worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher in Matyjaszewski’s group at Carnegie Mellon University from 2002 to 2003. She also worked as a research scientist in Richard D. McCullough's group at Carnegie Mellon University, synthesizing block copolymers containing semiconducting polythiophenes.
She joined the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Texas at Dallas in 2007 and is currently a Eugene McDermott Professor and Department Head.She received the NSF Career Award in 2010, the NS&M Outstanding Teacher Award in 2009 and 2017, the Inclusive Teaching Diversity Award in 2012, the President’s Teaching Excellence Award in 2014, Provost’s Award for Faculty Excellence in Undergraduate Research Mentoring in 2015, and Provost’s Award for Faculty Excellence in Graduate Research Mentoring in 2021. She also received the Wilfred T. Doherty Award from the Dallas Forth Worth Local Section of the American Chemical Society in 2021. She is an Associate Editor for the ACS Applied Polymer Materials.
Her research group is developing novel organic semiconductors for organic electronics, biodegradable and biocompatible polymers for drug delivery applications, and rare novel catalysts for polymerization of dienes and cyclic esters. At the University of Texas at Dallas, she supervised 44 graduate students, and 35 Ph.D. students graduated with a Ph.D. in Chemistry under her supervision. She also mentored ~175 undergraduate students who worked in her research lab on various projects.
Abstract
Amphiphilic Polycaprolactone Diblock Copolymers for Delivery of Anticancer Drugs
Mihaela C. Stefan
University of Texas at Dallas, U.S.A.
:
Amphiphilic polycaprolactone (PCL) diblock copolymers were synthesized through the ring-opening polymerization of various γ-substituted ε-caprolactone monomers and subsequently self-assembled in aqueous media to form micelles for anticancer drug delivery. These drug-loaded micelles can passively target tumors via the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect.
Our research has focused on the following areas:
1. Enhancing drug-loading capacity of amphiphilic diblock copolymer micelles
Strategies were developed to improve the drug-loading efficiency of micelles by tuning substituents within the hydrophobic block and/or co-loading with polyphenols such as resveratrol and quercetin. Non-covalent interactions, including π–π stacking and hydrogen bonding between the anticancer drug doxorubicin and polyphenols, significantly enhanced drug-loading capacity.
2. Glutathione depletion to overcome cancer drug resistance
Elevated glutathione levels are a key defense mechanism employed by cancer cells to survive oxidative stress and resist chemotherapy. To address this, doxorubicin-loaded micelles prepared from a novel 2,3-diiodomaleimide-functionalized PCL were designed to deplete intracellular glutathione, resulting in significantly enhanced cancer cell death.
3. Development of enediyne-functionalized micelles for DNA cleavage
Inspired by the mechanism of calicheamicin, enediyne-maleimide substituents were incorporated into the polymer system. Upon activation, these substituents generate diradicals capable of cleaving DNA in cancer cells, leading to potent cytotoxic effects.
4. Microfluidic organoid platforms for toxicity evaluation
A microfluidic device was developed to culture stem cell-derived organoids that mimic the dynamic microenvironment of living organs. The enhanced cell–cell and cell–matrix interactions within these organoids provide a more physiologically relevant platform for evaluating the ex vivo toxicity and therapeutic performance of drug-loaded micelles.
BiomMedD' 2026
All rights reserved © copyright by biommedd.ro