Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, Medical Sciences Campus, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, PR 00936-5067, Puerto Rico, USA.
Laboratory of Peptide Research and Development, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.
Crit Rev Ther Drug Carrier Syst. 2021;38(6):49-103. doi: 10.1615/CritRevTherDrugCarrierSyst.2021035650.
Nanocarriers are nanostructured vehicles employed to deliver anticancer drugs to the targeted tumor sites in the body. Nanocarriers have been successfully employed to circumvent certain limitations of conventional anticancer drug delivery while providing greater bioavailability, prolonged circulation time and higher tumor accumulation for enhanced therapeutic outcomes in cancer treatment. Nanocarriers are also responsive to functionalization to tailor their pharmaco-kinetics and achieve enhanced therapeutic outcomes in cancer therapy. Among organic, inorganic and hybrid type, several nanocarriers have gained approval for use in cancer patients, while many more are under clinical development. For the last two decades, cancer immunotherapy-based advanced targeting approaches such as monoclonal antibodies, antibody drug conjugates and immune checkpoint inhibitors that utilize human immune system functions have vastly developed which furnish better treatment options in several intractable cancers compared with traditional cancer therapies. This review discusses the imperative role of tumor vasculature in passive and active targeting of anticancer drugs using organic and inorganic nanocarriers and the current research efforts underway. The advanced targeting approaches for treatment of various cancers and their most recent clinical development scenario have been comprehensively explored. Further, potential challenges associated with each type of nanocarrier, and their translational obstacles are addressed.
纳米载体是被用来将抗癌药物递送到体内靶向肿瘤部位的纳米级结构载体。纳米载体已成功地被用来规避传统抗癌药物递送的某些限制，同时提供更高的生物利用度、延长的循环时间和更高的肿瘤积累，以增强癌症治疗的治疗效果。纳米载体也可以通过功能化来调整它们的药代动力学，从而在癌症治疗中实现更好的治疗效果。在有机、无机和混合类型中，有几种纳米载体已获得批准用于癌症患者，而还有更多的纳米载体正在临床开发中。在过去的二十年中，基于癌症免疫疗法的先进靶向方法，如利用人体免疫系统功能的单克隆抗体、抗体药物偶联物和免疫检查点抑制剂，已经得到了极大的发展，与传统癌症疗法相比，为几种难治性癌症提供了更好的治疗选择。这篇综述讨论了使用有机和无机纳米载体被动和主动靶向抗癌药物的肿瘤血管系统的重要作用，以及正在进行的研究工作。对各种癌症的先进靶向方法及其最近的临床发展情况进行了全面探讨。此外，还讨论了每种类型的纳米载体所涉及的潜在挑战及其转化障碍。
