Osteopontin targeted theranostic nanoprobes for laser-induced synergistic regression of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques.

Vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque (VASPs) is the major pathological cause of acute cardiovascular event. Early detection and precise intervention of VASP hold great clinical significance, yet remain a major challenge. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) realizes potent ablation efficacy under precise manipulation of laser irradiation.

Bioimaging guided pharmaceutical evaluations of nanomedicines for clinical translations.

Nanomedicines (NMs) have emerged as an efficient approach for developing novel treatment strategies against a variety of diseases. Over the past few decades, NM formulations have received great attention, and a large number of studies have been performed in this field. Despite this, only about 60 nano-formulations have received industrial acceptance and are currently available for clinical use.

Stimuli-responsive polymeric nanomaterials for rheumatoid arthritis therapy.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term inflammatory disease derived from an autoimmune disorder of the synovial membrane. Current therapeutic strategies for RA mainly aim to hamper the macrophages' proliferation and reduce the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Therefore, the accumulation of therapeutic agents targeted at the inflammatory site should be a crucial therapeutic strategy.

Nrp-1 receptor targeting peptide-functionalized TPGS micellar nanosystems to deliver 10-hydroxycampothecin for enhanced cancer chemotherapy.

Mitochondria are considered the power house of cells where ATP is generated for cellular metabolism, and they also act as a crucial regulator of the intrinsic apoptosis pathway. During ATP synthesis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced as secondary products. Overproduction of ROS can promote mitochondrial DNA mutation, dysfunction and depolarization of the mitochondrial membrane, ultimately resulting in cell death.

P-gp Inhibition and Mitochondrial Impairment by Dual-Functional Nanostructure Based on Vitamin E Derivatives To Overcome Multidrug Resistance.

Vitamin E derivatives possess many essential features for drug-delivery applications, such as biocompatibility, stability, improvement of water solubility of hydrophobic compounds, anticancer activity, and the ability to overcome multidrug resistance (MDR). Herein, vitamin E derivatives are used to overcome MDR through a combined P-glycoprotein (P-gp) inhibition and mitochondrial impairment strategy. A novel nanomicellar drug-delivery system as a carrier for doxorubicin (DOX) was developed, in which d-α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate was used as a P-gp inhibitor, α-tocopheryl succinate was introduced as a mitochondrial disrupting agent, and d-α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 2000 succinate was used as the main building block of micelles.

Nanoscale Polymersomes as Anti-Cancer Drug Carriers Applied for Pharmaceutical Delivery.

Polymersomes are self-assembled nano-vesicles composed of amphiphilic block copolymers. These building blocks can be selected from a large number of hydrophilic and hydrophobic polymers in order to achieve required properties of the final system, such as biodegradability, sustainable and multiple stimuli-response drug release, long blood circulation, and low toxicity. Moreover, the surface of polymersomes can be functionalized to induce targeting character.

Targeting tumor microenvironment with PEG-based amphiphilic nanoparticles to overcome chemoresistance.

Unlabelled: Multidrug resistance is one of the biggest obstacles in the treatment of cancer. Recent research studies highlight that tumor microenvironment plays a predominant role in tumor cell proliferation, metastasis, and drug resistance. Hence, targeting the tumor microenvironment provides a novel strategy for the evolution of cancer nanomedicine.