Polymeric Nanoparticles (PNPs) as drug delivery systems for SARS-CoV-2

Abstract

Researchers from all over the world have been working tirelessly to combat the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) COVID-19 pandemic since the World Health Organization (WHO) proclaimed it to be a pandemic in 2019. Expanding testing capacities, creating efficient medications, and creating safe and efficient COVID-19 (SARS CoV-2) vaccinations that provide the human body with long-lasting protection are a few tactics that need to be investigated. In clinical studies, drug delivery techniques including nanoparticles have been used since the early 1990s. Since then, as technology has advanced and the need for improved medication delivery has increased, wherein the field of nanomedicine has recently seen significant development. PNPs, or polymeric nanoparticles, are solid particles or particulate dispersions that range in size from 10 to 1000 nm and their ability to efficiently deliver therapeutics to specific targets makes them ideal drug carriers. This review article discusses the many polymeric nanoparticle (PNP) platforms developed to counteract the recent COVID-19 pandemic-related severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). The primary subjects of this article are the size, shape, cytotoxicity, and release mechanism of each nanoparticle. The two kinds of preparation methods in the synthesis of polymeric nanoparticles have been discussed: the first group uses premade polymers, while the other group depends on the direct polymerization of monomers. A few of the PNPs that have been utilized to combat previous viral outbreaks against SARS-CoV-2 are also covered.