Stimuli-responsive hydrogel based on natural polymers for breast cancer

Abstract

Aims: Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women in both high- and low-resource settings. Conventional breast cancer therapies were inefficient and had low patient compliance. Stimuli-responsive hydrogels possessing similar physicochemical features as soft tissue facilitate diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for breast cancer subtypes.Scope: Polysaccharides and polypeptides are major natural polymers with unique biocompatibility, biodegradability, and feasible modification approaches utilized frequently for hydrogel fabrication. Alternating the natural polymer-based hydrogel properties in response to external stimuli such as pH, temperature, light, ultrasonic, enzyme, glucose, magnetic, redox, and electric have provided great potential for the evolution of novel drug delivery systems (DDSs) and various advanced technologies in medical applications. Stimuli-responsive hydrogels are triggered by specific cancer tissue features, promote target delivery techniques, and modify release therapeutic agents at localized sites. This narrative review presented innovation in preparing and characterizing the most common stimuli-responsive natural polymer-based hydrogels for diagnostic and therapeutic applications in the breast cancer area.Conclusion: Stimuli-responsive hydrogels display bioinspiration products as DDSs for breast cancer subtypes, protect the shape of breast tissue, provide modified drug release, enhance therapeutic efficacy, and minimize chemotherapy agents’ side effects. The potential benefits of smart natural polymer-based hydrogels make them an exciting area of practice for breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Smart responsive in situ hydrogel systems applied in bone tissue engineering

“…Therefore, novel hydrogel biomaterials with smart properties to promote clinical practices in biomedicine and tissue regeneration engineering are needed. Smart responsive in situ hydrogels are extensively applied in bone tissue engineering ( Ali et al, 2024 ; Asadi et al, 2024 ; Zhou H. et al, 2024 ; Garg et al, 2024 ). This strategy can guide hydrogels to adapt to diverse shapes and depths of bone defects, which will promote integration with bone tissue.…”

“…Magnetic hydrogels (MHGs) have extensive tissue engineering and biomedical applications and possess the advantages of quick response, biocompatibility, tunable mechanical properties, porosity, and internal morphology ( Asadi et al, 2024 ; Liu et al, 2024 ). MHGs can be fabricated by blending exogenous additives (e.g., paramagnetic, ferromagnetic) in the polymeric matrix and placing the matrix in a magnetic field (static or oscillating) ( Zhou K. et al, 2024 ; Zhang K. et al, 2024 ).…”

Advanced Strategies for Strengthening the Immune Activation Effect of Traditional Antitumor Therapies

“…In another interesting work, Li et al employed the cancer cell membrane (CM)-packaged iron oxide nanoparticles to load with the chemotherapeutic drug (DTX) and CD47 inhibitor (siCD47) to perform the magnetic resonance imaging-guided synergistic chemotherapy and immunotherapy for tumor (Figure 5D). 73 Due to the homologous targeting effect of CM, the obtained nanoplatform (USIO NPs) could specifically accumulate in the tumor site and then release DTX and siCD47 in the presence of GSH. The combination of DTX-induced tumor ICD effect as well as the siCD47-involved promotion of antigen uptake could lead to the significant maturation of APCs.…”

“…(D) The construction of USIO NPs and its application in inducing strong antitumor immune response via the tumor-targeting chemotherapy and initiation of the phagocytosis of APCs on tumor antigens. Reproduced with permission from ref . Copyright 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.…”

“…Similarly, this MIXNP nanosystem exhibited excellent immune regulation ability, as indicated by the up-regulated immunocompetent T cells and the down-regulated immunosuppressive M2 macrophages in the tumor, resulting in efficient antitumor efficacy. In another interesting work, Li et al employed the cancer cell membrane (CM)-packaged iron oxide nanoparticles to load with the chemotherapeutic drug (DTX) and CD47 inhibitor (siCD47) to perform the magnetic resonance imaging-guided synergistic chemotherapy and immunotherapy for tumor (Figure D) . Due to the homologous targeting effect of CM, the obtained nanoplatform (USIO NPs) could specifically accumulate in the tumor site and then release DTX and siCD47 in the presence of GSH.…”