Nagaraj Karuppiah
Center for Global Health Research (CGHR), Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences (SIMATS), Saveetha Nagar, Thandalam, Kanchipuram - Chennai Rd, Chennai 602105 Tamil Nadu, India.
Int J Pharm. 2025 May 2:125655. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2025.125655.
Cancer is one of the most formidable global health challenges, needing ongoing progress in therapeutic approaches. Conventional cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, frequently suffer from low solubility, systemic toxicity, and a lack of tailored drug delivery, resulting in unwanted side effects and limited efficacy. Surfactant-based drug delivery systems have emerged as a viable method for increasing drug solubility, stability, and tailored transport to tumor locations. Surfactants, due to their amphiphilic character, play an important role in the development of various drug delivery systems, such as micelles, liposomes, nanoemulsions, and lipid-based nanoparticles, which improve drug bioavailability and therapeutic index. This article looks at the fundamental role of surfactants in drug administration, including their classification (ionic, nonionic, amphoteric, and zwitterionic) and self-assembly behavior in the formation of micellar, vesicular, and emulsified nanocarriers. Various surfactant-based drug delivery platforms in oncology are explored, including polymeric and surfactant-stabilized micelles, liposomes (e.g., Doxil), nanoemulsions, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), and nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs). Furthermore, the use of surfactant-metal complexes in cancer therapy is emphasized because of their potential to improve therapeutic activity and selectivity. The review also looks at surfactant-enhanced drug targeting strategies, such as passive targeting using the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect, active targeting with ligand-functionalized surfactant-based carriers, and stimuli-responsive systems designed for controlled drug release in the tumor microenvironment. Surfactant-based drug delivery advancements are explored, with an emphasis on current advances such as biodegradable and bio-inspired surfactants, combination therapies using surfactant-stabilized carriers, and AI-driven drug formulation techniques. Despite its potential, surfactant-based drug delivery systems confront several hurdles, including biocompatibility concerns, synthetic surfactant toxicity, stability issues, and scaling restrictions in pharmaceutical manufacture. Furthermore, regulatory barriers in clinical translation remain severe. Addressing these problems with innovative surfactant formulations, green chemical techniques, and sophisticated nanotechnological alterations will be critical to optimizing these systems for clinical use. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the progress, challenges, and future perspectives of surfactant-based drug delivery systems in cancer therapy, highlighting their potential to revolutionize oncology treatments by improving drug efficacy, reducing systemic toxicity, and enabling precision medicine.
癌症是全球最严峻的健康挑战之一，治疗方法需要不断取得进展。传统的癌症治疗方法，如化疗，常常存在溶解度低、全身毒性以及缺乏针对性给药等问题，导致出现不良副作用且疗效有限。基于表面活性剂的药物递送系统已成为提高药物溶解度、稳定性以及实现向肿瘤部位定向运输的一种可行方法。表面活性剂因其两亲性，在各种药物递送系统（如胶束、脂质体、纳米乳剂和脂质纳米颗粒）的开发中发挥着重要作用，这些系统可提高药物的生物利用度和治疗指数。本文探讨了表面活性剂在药物给药中的基础作用，包括其分类（离子型、非离子型、两性离子型和两性型）以及在形成胶束、囊泡和乳化纳米载体过程中的自组装行为。还探讨了肿瘤学中各种基于表面活性剂的药物递送平台，包括聚合物和表面活性剂稳定的胶束、脂质体（如多柔比星脂质体）、纳米乳剂、固体脂质纳米颗粒（SLN）和纳米结构脂质载体（NLC）。此外，由于表面活性剂 - 金属配合物具有提高治疗活性和选择性的潜力，因此强调了其在癌症治疗中的应用。该综述还探讨了表面活性剂增强的药物靶向策略，例如利用增强的通透性和滞留（EPR）效应进行被动靶向、使用配体功能化的基于表面活性剂的载体进行主动靶向以及设计用于在肿瘤微环境中控制药物释放的刺激响应系统。探讨了基于表面活性剂的药物递送进展，重点介绍了当前的进展，如可生物降解和受生物启发的表面活性剂、使用表面活性剂稳定载体的联合疗法以及人工智能驱动的药物制剂技术。尽管具有潜力，但基于表面活性剂的药物递送系统面临若干障碍，包括生物相容性问题、合成表面活性剂毒性、稳定性问题以及制药生产中的规模限制。此外，临床转化中的监管障碍仍然严峻。采用创新的表面活性剂配方、绿色化学技术和先进的纳米技术改进来解决这些问题，对于优化这些系统用于临床至关重要。本综述全面分析了基于表面活性剂的药物递送系统在癌症治疗中的进展、挑战和未来前景，强调了它们通过提高药物疗效、降低全身毒性以及实现精准医学来变革肿瘤治疗的潜力。
