targeting can be enhanced by ‘active targeting’, where specific ligands (peptides, antibodies, aptamers, or small molecules) are attached to the nanoparticle surface to bind receptors/antigens overexpressed on cancer cells. Targeting increases accumulation in tumors and lessens exposure to healthy tissue, which can improve a toxic drug’'s therapeutic index and reduce adverse side effects.
therapeutic effect was observed, but it required a 1:2 ratio of NSCs to glioma cells. Another group of
investigators similarly implanted murine glioma cells mixed with murine neural stem cells transduced to
express interleukin-4 into syngeneic hosts, with 80% long-term survival compared with 40% with
nontransduced NSCs and none for controls. Both of these studies involved simultaneous inoc
for cancer and other diseases.
Liposomes are composite structures made of phospholipids and may contain small amounts of other molecules.
Nano-particle drug carriers
Nano-particles are colloidal particles that range in size from 10 to 1000 nm in diameter, and are formulated using biodegradable polymers5-10 in which a therapeutic agent can be entrapped, adsorbed, or chemically coupled.
*’Nano’ means….
Nanometer: one billionth of a meter
Nano-: prefix comes from the Greek word for ‘dwarf’
Chemical, physical, and biological properties that differ from those of their larger, or bulk counterparts
Nanotechnology: The National Nanotechnology Initiative(NNI)-> the science of materials and phenomena in the range of 1 to 100nm in diameter
*Features of ‘nanoparticles