UC Davis

In Chapter 1, the introduction and literature review are provided for the basis of pancreatic cancer, its treatment options, and the current state of clinical trials. Autophagy as a process is discussed along with its relevance in cancer and particularly its role in pancreatic tumors is highlighted. Finally, cancer stem cells are reviewed with basic background, their relevance to pancreatic cancer and autophagy are again highlighted. Chapter 2 discusses the current state of nanomaterials that can transform to adapt to each biological barrier present in tumors. Each stage of drug delivery is discussed to apply the relevant design ideas for new chemotherapeutics in the future. In Chapter 3, the previous chapters are combined to illustrate the ability of the self-assembling nanoparticle, bisaminoquinolone derivative BAQ12O, that targets the cancer stem cell population in pancreatic tumor models. Finally, a short conclusion summarizing the three chapters closes the dissertation.