Dendrimers as an Effective Nanocarrier in Cardiovascular Disease

Abstract

In the last two decades, dendrimers have proven their capabilities in drug delivery, physical stabilization of the drug, solubility enhancement of the poorly soluble drugs and gene delivery. Several key features of dendrimers such as excellent control over molecular structure, nanoscopic size, availability of multiple functional groups at the periphery and narrow polydispersity index distinguish them as a superior choice over available polymers. The diversity of bio-actives loaded in dendrimers due to covalent and non-covalent interactions, such as hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interaction contribute to the physical forces for binding of bioactives. The key advantage of drug-loaded dendrimers is the delayed and sustained-release of bioactives because of the encapsulation of the drug in the hydrophobic cavities of the dendrimer that acts as a sink to retain the drug molecules for extended duration. Because of these features researchers are particularly excited about the potential application of dendrimers as a versatile carrier for drug delivery. Collectively, this review focuses on detailed note on the delivery and improved solubility of poorly soluble anti-cardiovascular bioactives, nitric oxide (NO) donor for anti-thrombosis, gene delivery and delivery of receptor agonists for cardio-protective action of the receptors using dendrimers.

The potential of dendrimer in delivery of therapeutics for dentistry

“…Dendrimer which is a type of nanoparticle is made up of unimolecular micelles having an interior hydrophobic and exterior hydrophilic shells acting as a carrier for drug. It arises from Greek word dendron which means ""tree" or "branch" [10,11,12,13]. Additional names of dendrimers are "cascade polymers."…”

Brain Delivery of Multifunctional Dendrimer Protein Bioconjugates

“…Dendrimers are highly branched globular macromolecules built of branched monomers on a small core molecule. The advantages of using dendrimers are control over size, liquid solubility, and a multitude of functionalization possibilities . However, dendrimer synthesis is laborious and the balance between toxicity and biodegradability is highly dependent on the scaffold.…”

Developments in Treatment Methodologies Using Dendrimers for Infectious Diseases

“…Despite their significant use in the therapies and drug targeting, dendrimers pose considerable drawbacks as well ( Table 3 ). Due to their cationic surface charge, dendrimers may have toxicity issues such as cytotoxicity and hematological toxicity [ 174 , 175 , 176 ]. The small size of the dendrimers makes it easy for them to interact with cellular components including nucleus, plasma membrane and endosomes.…”