Nanomedicine (London, England)最新文献

Aims: The objective of the present study was to develop and characterize tamoxifen (TAM)-loaded TPGS-PLGA nanoparticles (NPs) for more effective breast cancer treatment than conventional therapy.

Materials and methods: TAM@TPGS-PLGA-NPs were developed using the emulsion-solvent evaporation method. Furthermore, various physicochemical characterizations were performed. In addition, cytotoxicity, in vitro hemocompatibility, histopathological, and imaging studies were conducted to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the formulation.

Results: TAM@TPGS-PLGA-NPs had a particle size of 171.5 ± 7.3 nm, zeta potential of +34.08 ± 3.14 mV, and an entrapment efficiency was found to be 93.64 ± 1.86%, respectively. At an acidic pH of 5.5, TAM@TPGS-PLGA-NPs exhibited higher drug release compared to pH 7.4. In vitro cytotoxicity study revealed that TAM@TPGS-PLGA-NPs were 6.21-fold more cytotoxic than free TAM. The formulation exhibited excellent hemocompatibility and organ safety. In vivo ultrasound/photoacoustic imaging confirmed tumor-selective accumulation and significantly suppressed tumor progression in the DMBA-induced female SD rats breast cancer model.

Discussion: The developed TAM@TPGS-PLGA-NPs demonstrated enhanced drug release in the tumor microenvironment, significantly improved cytotoxicity, and excellent biocompatibility compared to the free drug. These findings indicate their strong potential for tumor-targeted breast cancer therapy with reduced systemic toxicity and enhanced therapeutic efficacy.

Objective: To develop a novel lipid nanoparticle (Ato@DSPE-PEG-CHP) for targeted delivery to ischemic myocardium to treat myocardial infarction.

Methods: Ato@DSPE-PEG-CHP was prepared using the thin-film dispersion method. Physicochemical properties were characterized by transmission electron microscope (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). In vitro targeting, uptake, and cytotoxicity were evaluated in OGD/R-treated HL-1 cells using confocal microscopy and CCK8. In vivo, a mouse MI model was established by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. The targeted distribution was observed using small animal in vivo imaging. Efficacy was evaluated using TTC, HE, Masson and TUNEL staining. Biosafety was evaluated through hemolysis assays and histopathological analysis.

Results: Ato@DSPE-PEG-CHP with uniform morphology, excellent dispersibility, and high stability were successfully prepared. This material can target myocardial ischemia sites both in vitro and in vivo. Ato@DSPE-PEG-CHP reduced infarct size, cell necrosis, inflammation, fibrosis, and apoptosis; decreased levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6, and malondialdehyde; and increased the enzyme activity of superoxide dismutase. Additionally, it demonstrated good biocompatibility and exhibited no significant toxicity to major organs.

Conclusion: Ato@DSPE-PEG-CHP specifically targeted ischemic myocardium, alleviated damage through its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects, and demonstrated superior efficacy and safety, presenting a promising treatment strategy for MI.

Aim: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent degenerative joint disease characterized primarily by chronic pain. Currently, there are no highly effective treatments for OA pain. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of M2 macrophage-derived small extracellular vesicles (M2-sEVs) in treating OA and alleviating its associated pain, and to investigate their mechanism of action in pain relief.

Methods: M2-sEVs were isolated via ultracentrifugation. A sodium iodoacetate-induced rat OA model was established to assess the effects of M2-sEVs. RNA sequencing was utilized to identify the molecular mechanisms underlying these analgesic effects, with subsequent validation experiments conducted via RT-qPCR, Western blot, and ELISA assays. Human end-stage OA synovial tissues cultured ex vivo were also utilized to confirm clinical relevance.

Results: M2-sEVs administration alleviated pain behaviors and joint pathology in OA rats, suppressing pain-related molecules in synovium and dorsal root ganglia. Mechanistically, M2-sEVs inhibited synovial macrophage-derived nerve growth factor (NGF) by modulating the Notch pathway. Importantly, this therapeutic mechanism was validated in ex vivo cultured human synovial tissues.

Conclusion: M2-sEVs effectively reduce OA-related pain by suppressing macrophage-derived NGF expression via the Notch pathway, highlighting their promising potential as a nanomedicine-based therapeutic strategy for OA pain management.

In this review, applications of engineered peptide nanomaterials in enhanced cancer imaging are summarized, focusing on the most pertinent of reports. The design principles of said peptide nanostructures are outlined as well as their functionalization for imaging modalities and tumor targeting. The landscape of the field is explored and areas that were deemed underdeveloped are highlighted. Finally, the challenges and limitations that must be overcome to enable the wider clinical adoption of peptide-based nanomaterials in cancer imaging are discussed, and future perspectives are offered.

Influenza remains a major global health concern, with the ongoing seasonal epidemics causing millions of cases and up to 650,000 deaths worldwide annually. Current influenza vaccines only provide strain-specific and short-lived protection, exposing vulnerability to antigenic drift and reassortments. To overcome these limitations, next-generation vaccine platforms are being developed, with nanoparticle-based approaches showing promise. Displaying hemagglutinin (HA) on multivalent scaffolds enhances B cell receptor engagement, germinal center formation, and affinity maturation, while supporting durable and broadly protective humoral immunity. This review highlights recent published advances found in PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar since 2020 in HA-displaying nanoparticle influenza vaccines, emphasizing strategies to improve immunogenicity, broaden protection across influenza strains and subtypes, and redirect responses toward conserved epitopes of HA.

Infectious diseases remain a major threat to global public health, a challenge further exacerbated by the rapid rise of antimicrobial resistance. In this context, tetrahedral framework nucleic acids (tFNA) have recently gained attention as a novel nanomaterial platform with therapeutic potential. Their advantages arise from a dual mechanism. On one hand, tFNA directly contribute to overcoming antimicrobial resistance by facilitating antibiotic penetration, disrupting bacterial membrane integrity, and downregulating resistance-associated genes. On the other hand, they serve as efficient drug delivery vehicles that enhance the stability, bioavailability, and cellular uptake of antimicrobial agents. Beyond these antibacterial effects, tFNA can also modulate host immunity: their intrinsic anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties help mitigate excessive inflammation and tissue injury, thereby supporting the restoration of immune homeostasis. Although several challenges still hinder their clinical translation, tFNA represent a novel and versatile platform for infectious disease treatment, offering considerable promise for future therapeutic development.

Utilization of endogenous RNA interference (RNAi) mechanisms via delivery of exogeneous small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules offers a transformative approach to treatment of disease by enabling sequence specific silencing of mutated gene expression. Nanotechnology-based platforms have enabled delivery of siRNA and have already been clinically validated for intravenous (IV) infusion administration (e.g patisiran). Oral administration of siRNA remains an unmet challenge due to formidable biological barriers in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Nanotechnology-enabled strategies for oral siRNA delivery have emerged as a powerful solution to overcoming these biological barriers for effective gene silencing. This review provides a comprehensive overview of GI barriers for siRNA delivery as well as highlights recent advances in nanoparticle platforms for oral siRNA delivery. In addition, this review explores translational considerations and highlights the potential of oral siRNA nanomedicines to reduce dependence on invasive parenteral delivery and costly monoclonal antibody therapies. Together, these advances outline a promising path toward clinically viable, patient-friendly siRNA therapeutics delivered orally. Literature for this review was identified through database searches [University of New Mexico University Libraries, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and PubMed databases April 2025-November 2025] as it related to the oral delivery of nanoparticles, siRNA-loaded nanoparticles, gene therapy, and related nanomedicine delivery strategies.

Formononetin (FMN) is an extracted component of traditional Chinese medicine with anticancer effects, but its poor water solubility and low bioavailability have limited further research and application. Therefore, based on FMN that is the natural antitumor agent, we synthesized a formononetin quantum dots (FMNQDs) for colon cancer therapy, which has the advantages of outstanding water solubility, homogeneous particle size (2.03 ± 1.0 nm), exceptional stability and good intracellular fluorescence imaging effect. The results show that FMNQD exhibits good antitumor activity by inducing mitochondrial-mediated apoptosis, characterized by elevated intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, decreased mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and modulated expression of Bax and Bcl-2. In vivo validation confirmed FMNQD's significant tumor growth inhibition. The tumor inhibition rate in the 8 mg/kg dose group was as high as 60.06 ± 6.22%. Moreover, blood biochemical analysis suggested a favorable safety profile. This study establishes FMNQDs as a potential therapeutic agent for colon cancer, providing preclinical evidence to support further development of formononetin-based nanomedicines.

While remarkable strides have been made in personalized precision oncology, integrating diagnosis and therapy within a unitary theranostic platform remains a pivotal challenge. Sonodynamic therapy (SDT), which leverages ultrasound to activate sonosensitizers for generating tumoricidal reactive oxygen species (ROS), offers distinct advantages including non-invasiveness, spatiotemporal precision, and deep tissue penetration. Its capability to visualize tumors by converting acoustic signals into diagnostic images presents a further unique merit. However, SDT efficacy is constrained by suboptimal sonosensitizer efficiency, the hypoxic tumor microenvironment, and augmented antioxidant defenses. Single-atom nanozymes (SANs) emerge as a transformative strategy to overcome these hurdles. They catalytically decompose endogenous hydrogen peroxide to alleviate hypoxia, deplete glutathione to disarm antioxidant defenses, and harness piezoelectric synergies. The integration of SANs' atomic-level catalytic architecture with sonosensitizers' ultrasonic responsiveness facilitates tumor hypoxia mitigation and enables image-guided precision therapy. This review systematically elucidates the molecular design of SAN-based sonosensitizers, analyzes their catalytic mechanisms for enhancing SDT, and discusses associated challenges and future directions for clinical translation. It aims to lay a theoretical foundation for developing next-generation sonodynamic SANs that are intelligent, safe, and environmentally benign. [PubMed and Web of Science, from inception to June 2025].

Whenever nanomaterials come into contact with cells and tissues, the risk of material-specific cytotoxic reaction is increased. With the widespread use of nanoparticles in industrial, but also biomedical applications, the increasing exposure to nanomaterials raises safety concerns. In-depth understanding the mechanisms of nanomaterial interactions with cells and of their cytotoxic effects is therefore important both for minimizing the risk of potential adverse effects on human health in case of involuntary exposure and for enhancing cell-killing ability of nanosystems developed as tumoritoxic tools. This Journal Watch article highlights recent reports focusing on mechanisms of cellular interactions and toxicity of nanomaterials.