Simulation of magnetic drug targeting through tracheobronchial airways in the presence of an external non-uniform magnetic field using Lagrangian magnetic particle tracking

Drug delivery technologies are an important area within biomedicine. Targeted drug delivery aims to reduce the undesired side effects of drug usage by directing or capturing the active agents near a desired site within the body. Herein, a numerical investigation of magnetic drug targeting (MDT) using aerosol drugs named polystyrene particle (PMS40) in human lung is presented considering one-way coupling on the transport and capture of the magnetic particle. A realistic 3D geometry based on CT scan images is provided for CFD simulation. An external non-uniform magnetic field is applied. Parametric investigation is conducted and the influence of particle diameter, magnetic source position, and magnetic number (Mn) on the deposition efficiency and particle behavior is reported. According to the results, the magnetic field increased deposition efficiency of particles in a target region, the efficiency of deposition and MDT technique has a direct relation with increasing the particle diameter for magnetic number of 1 Tesla (T) and lower (Mn≤1(T)). Also it can be seen that there is an inverse relation between the particle diameter and deposition efficiency when Mn is more than 1 (T). - Highlights: • A realistic 3D geometry of human tracheobronchial airway based on CT scan image. • External non-uniform magnetic field applied to target the magnetic drug career. • Lagrangian particle tracking using discrete phase model applied. • The efficiency of deposition is dependent of magnetic number and particle diameter