Chitosan Nanoparticles-Insight into Properties, Functionalization and Applications in Drug Delivery and Theranostics

Abstract

Nanotechnology-based development of drug delivery systems is an attractive area of research in formulation driven R&D laboratories that makes administration of new and complex drugs feasible. It plays a significant role in the design of novel dosage forms by attributing target specific drug delivery, controlled drug release, improved, patient friendly drug regimen and lower side effects. Polysaccharides, especially chitosan, occupy an important place and are widely used in nano drug delivery systems owing to their biocompatibility and biodegradability. This review focuses on chitosan nanoparticles and envisages to provide an insight into the chemistry, properties, drug release mechanisms, preparation techniques and the vast evolving landscape of diverse applications across disease categories leading to development of better therapeutics and superior clinical outcomes. It summarizes recent advancement in the development and utility of functionalized chitosan in anticancer therapeutics, cancer immunotherapy, theranostics and multistage delivery systems.

Functionalized Chitosan Nanomaterials: A Jammer for Quorum Sensing

“…Some of the important properties of chitosan that have led to its wide range of applications in various fields (such as NPs) include mucoadhesion (as shown by trimethyl chitosan and carboxymethyl chitosan) [ 58 ]; controlled drug release, which enhances its effectiveness for drug delivery [ 59 ]; permeation enhancement, as shown by trimethyl chitosan [ 60 ]; antibacterial activity; no cytotoxicity; biocompatibility; and biodegradability. These properties are incredibly advantageous for the advancement of biocompatible and biodegradable medication conveyance frameworks [ 61 , 62 ].…”

“…The discovery of the ChNPs involves various ‘bottom-up’ or ‘top-down’ approaches, or a synergistic combination of both techniques. However, among the regular ‘bottom-up’ methods, the most popular ones are ionotropic gelation and the polyelectrolyte complex method [ 65 ] due to their straightforwardness and non-requirement of high shear power and natural solvents [ 66 ], unlike the ‘top-down’ methods of milling, ultrasonication, and high-pressure homogenization [ 62 , 67 ].Irrespective of the methodology adopted for their preparation, the ChNPs are regularly used for drug delivery to combat several diseases with appreciable efficacy ( Table 2 ). Although the precise mode of antimicrobial action is not determined completely, it was proposed that the molecular structure of chitosan is imperative for its antimicrobial activities.…”

“…These techniques are straightforward and do not require high shear power or utilize natural solvents [ 66 ]. On the other hand, the ‘top-down’ methods are milling, ultrasonication, and high-pressure homogenization [ 62 , 67 ]. Figure 1 is a schematic representation of the various methods that are employed for the synthesis of ChNPs.…”

Current-status and applications of polysaccharides in drug delivery systems

“…The phosphorylated chitosan-based micelles have been studied for their effect on mucosal drug delivery during the change in zeta potential. On contacting the alkaline phosphatase (cell surface glycoproteins found in many organs such as the intestine, the lungs and the vagina), the phosphorylated micelles undergo a split off to make the zeta potential from negative to positive or neutral [46][47][48]. An initial negatively charged surface enables the micelles to resist the binding of polysaccharide to negative charged components of the mucus and diffuse through the layer of the mucus.…”

Nanomedicine: A Promising Way to Manage Alzheimer’s Disease

“…Targeting the brain with zinc-loaded polymeric NPs can also lead to the decrease in amyloid plaque size and mitigate other neuronal dysfunctions in AD mice (Vilella et al, 2018). The polysaccharides in NP formulations have several advantages in biological systems, including being highly stable, being nontoxic, being biodegradable, and having a hydrophilic nature (Liu et al, 2008;Venkatesan et al, 2016;Jhaveri et al, 2021). It has been investigated that sitagliptin (SIT) [a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor]-loaded NPs show effective therapy against AD symptoms in an animal model (Wilson et al, 2020).…”