Therapeutic Peptides and Proteins: Stabilization Challenges and Biomedical Applications by Means of Nanodelivery Systems

The delivery of peptides and proteins usually faces formulation development challenges attributed to the difficulties encountered in their stabilization. Nanoparticles offer an alternative to improve the physicochemical stability of such biomacromolecules, while increasing their bioavailability by overcoming biological absorption barriers. With this review, we aim to discuss the stability problems of proteins and peptides that have driven the scientific community to find in nanotechnology a valid alternative for oral administration of biomolecules. In addition, we describe the most commonly used nanoparticles for this purpose (e.g., polymers such as polylactic acid, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), polycaprolactone, modified chitosan, and lipids such as oil-in-water nanoemulsions, self-emulsified drug delivery systems, solid lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid carriers, liposomes, as well as hybrid systems like micelles), and we show some of the most important recent applications of these nanoparticles for the delivery of proteins and peptides, including for the treatment of diabetes, viruses (such as HIV), cancer, as well as in the development of vaccines.