98%
921
2 minutes
20
Central nervous system (CNS) cancers are among the most common and treatment-resistant diseases. The main reason for the low treatment efficiency of the disorders is the barriers against targeted delivery of anticancer agents to the site of interest, including the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and blood-brain tumor barrier (BBTB). BBB is a strong biological barrier separating circulating blood from brain extracellular fluid that selectively and actively prevents cytotoxic agents and majority of anticancer drugs from entering the brain. BBB and BBTB are the major impediments against targeted drug delivery into CNS tumors. Nanotechnology and its allied modalities offer interesting and effective delivery strategies to transport drugs across BBB to reach brain tissue. Integrating anticancer drugs into different nanocarriers improves the delivery performance of the resultant compounds across BBB. Surface engineering of nanovehicles using specific ligands, antibodies and proteins enhances the BBB crossing efficacy as well as selective and specific targeting to the target cancerous tissues in CNS tumors. Multifunctional nanoparticles (NPs) have brought revolutionary advances in targeted drug delivery to brain tumors. This study reviews the main anatomical, physiological and biological features of BBB and BBTB in drug delivery and the recent advances in targeting strategies in NPs-based drug delivery for CNS tumors. Moreover, we discuss advances in using specific ligands, antibodies, and surface proteins for designing and engineering of nanocarriers for targeted delivery of anticancer drugs to CNS tumors. Finally, the current clinical applications and the perspectives in the targeted delivery of therapeutic molecules and genes to CNS tumors are discussed.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1568026620666200826122402 | DOI Listing |
BMC Biotechnol
September 2025
Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, 12613, Egypt.
Fundam Clin Pharmacol
October 2025
Postgraduate Program in Pharmaceutical Science, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
This review highlights the integration of drug repurposing and nanotechnology-driven delivery strategies as innovative approaches to enhance the antifungal activity of statins against mucosal candidiasis, providing a framework for future translational research and clinical application. The rising prevalence of antifungal resistance and virulence factors of Candida albicans underscore the limitations of current therapies. Statins, commonly used as lipid-lowering agents, have emerged as attractive repurposed drug candidates due to their ability to interfere with fungal ergosterol biosynthesis and Ras-mediated signaling pathways.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPharm Res
September 2025
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, University of Texas at Arlington, 500 W First St, Rm 211, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA.
Objective: A fundamental understanding of drug diffusion and binding processes is critical for the design and optimization of a wide variety of drug delivery devices. Most of the past literature assume binding to occur uniformly throughout the tissue, or, at best, in specific layers of a multilayer tissue. However, in many realistic scenarios, such as in cancer-targeting drugs, drug binding occurs in discrete irregularly shaped regions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNat Rev Urol
September 2025
Department of Genitourinary Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA.
Low-grade non-muscle invasive bladder cancer is a specific category of bladder cancer with a favourable prognosis; however, its management presents several challenges. The risk of stage progression is very low, but approximately half of patients will experience recurrence within the first 5 years after diagnosis. This high propensity for recurrence, coupled with the threat of progression, mandates ongoing surveillance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNat Nanotechnol
September 2025
Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA.
Maintaining safe and potent drug levels in vivo is challenging. Multidomain peptides assemble into supramolecular hydrogels with a well-defined, highly porous nanostructure that makes them attractive for drug delivery. However, their ability to extend release is typically limited by rapid drug diffusion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF