Design strategies for physical-stimuli-responsive programmable nanotherapeutics

Abstract

Nanomaterials that respond to externally applied physical stimuli such as temperature, light, ultrasound, magnetic field and electric field have shown great potential for controlled and targeted delivery of therapeutic agents. However, the body of literature on programming these stimuli-responsive nanomaterials to attain the desired level of pharmacologic responses is still fragmented and has not been systematically reviewed. The purpose of this review is to summarize and synthesize the literature on various design strategies for simple and sophisticated programmable physical stimuli-responsive nanotherapeutics.

Thermo-Sensitive Nanomaterials: Recent Advance in Synthesis and Biomedical Applications

“…The literature is vast, with exponential growth in the number of articles demonstrating advances in synthesis, characterization, and application of different thermo-sensitive nanoparticles (NPs) [ 15 , 16 ]. Among the wide variety of NPs reported in the literature, magnetic NPs (MNPs), superparamagnetic iron oxide NPs (SPIONs), gold NPs (AuNPs), liposomes, and thermo-sensitive polymers-based NPs such as micelles and nanogels have gained an increased relevance when biomedical applications are envisioned.…”

Latest advances in combining gold nanomaterials with physical stimuli towards new responsive therapeutic and diagnostic strategies

“…Modifications in the nanomaterial structure include both chemical and physical changes, such as, for example, light-induced cleavage of photosensitive chemical bonds for spatial-and temporal-controlled drug release, melting of thermoresponsive coating polymers and subsequent targeted drug release, and nanomaterial phase transitions or polymer degradation in response to ultrasound stimulus. For more details on the design strategies that can be used for programming physical stimuliresponsive nanomaterials, a comprehensive review has been recently published by Sahle et al [36].…”

“…Temperature-responsive systems are mainly hybrid AuNMs, where the gold core is coupled to a thermoresponsive polymer, such as poly(N-substituted acrylamide)s or poly(N-isopropylacrylamideco-2-(dimethylamino)-ethylmethacrylate) [43]. Coupling is obtained via copolymerization, conjugation and/or grafting [36]. The intensity of the temperature stimulus needed to trigger a response, therefore, depends on the polymer type used and is independent of the AuNM physico-chemical properties.…”

Ornamentation of Triskelion Peptide Nanotori to Produce Gold Nanoparticle (AuNP)‐Embedded Peptide Nanobangles

“…One simple technique is the symmetrical expansion of existing as well as new short‐peptide conjugates by using an appropriate covalent linker to enhance its flexibility . The symmetrically expanded part can easily be influenced by external stimuli such as temperature, light, solvent, and pH to name only a few . Such molecules with predetermined symmetry can have increased but spatially controlled flexibility relative to pre‐existing conjugates and consequently more sensitivity towards external stimuli.…”

“…Such molecules with predetermined symmetry can have increased but spatially controlled flexibility relative to pre‐existing conjugates and consequently more sensitivity towards external stimuli. Thus any changes in symmetry in the presence of external stimuli can also lead to conformational changes and subsequently change the shape of the obtained nanostructures . Self‐assembly, a common technique to develop symmetrical structures, has already been used for the construction of cagelike structures or more complex microstructures …”