|
| Organic nanoparticles | Composition | Applications | Advantages |
|
| Peptide-based nanoparticles | Ferritin protein cage nanoparticles family of proteins, 10–500 nm | Chemically or genetically modified, multifunctional probes for tumor imaging; ferritin is pH dependent, nanoparticles (NPs) decorated with transferrin (Tf) | Used for nasopharyngeal cancer-specific therapy |
|
| Lipid-based nanoparticle | Cholesterol mediated cationic solid nanoparticles 10–400 nm | Used for delivery of proteins and peptides and used for immune-stimulatory RNA adjuvant, cancer therapy, anti-viral agents, brain tumors. | High drug entrapment efficiency and loading capacity |
|
| Solid lipid nanoparticles | Colloidal 10–700 nm | Solid lipid nanoparticles can be used as colloidal drug carriers for various therapeutics, pharmaceutical alternative of liposomes and emulsions | Used to deliver drug orally, topically, or by inhalation |
|
| SiRNA delivery systems | SiRNA 5–40 nm | Used in malignant melanomas and cancer therapy | Suppress effects of oncogenes effective vehicles for delivery of PrP |
|
| Colloidal drug carriers | 10–400 nm diameters in size microemulsions | Cargo carriers in vaccine therapies of CNS pathogens. | High drug entrapment efficiency and loading capacity |
|
| Liposome drug carriers | Closed spherical assemblies of amphiphilic delivery vehicles 10–700 nm | For therapeutic agents/drugs minimize systemic exposure, gene transfer vector, and mode of delivery, biocompatible and biodegradable materials, applications in biomedicine and food industry; liposomes can increase the drug distribution, bioavailability and its targeted action, anticancer drugs | Nontoxic biodegradable, prolong circulation of drugs |
|
Magneto-liposomes
phospholipid bilayers | 50–100 nontoxic biodegradable, nonantigenic, low systemic toxicity, prolong circulation of drugs,
controlled | Drug release cause pseudoallergic inflammation, controlled delivery of drugs in aqueous space within liposome, intercalated in to lipid bilayers, gene delivery | Nontoxic biodegradable, low systematic toxicity, controlled drug release |
|
| Micelles | An aggregate of surfactant molecules dispersed in a liquid colloid, micellar structures mainly core of block copolymer | Micelles physically entrapped the drug and transport it to the target area and release required concentrations, formed by two fatty acyl chains | Deliver large amount of drugs to cancer cells |
|
| Polymeric micelles | An aggregate of surfactant molecules
dispersed in a liquid colloid, 10–800 nm | New drug carrier systems stability in plasma,
longevity, cancer chemotherapy obstruct tumor
angiogenesis | Potential targets of anticancer drugs |
|
| Carbon nanotubes | Cylindrical graphite sheets 1.5–5000 length and 0.5–20 diameter, traverse cell membrane as nanoneedles, thermal | Conductivity, target tumors. Insoluble in aqueous media, cytotoxic, poor incorporation capacity, targeted
delivery of drugs, genes, vaccines, antibodies, and thermotherapy of tumors | Traverse cell membrane, show thermal conductivity, and target tumors |
|
| Quantam dots | Colloidal graphic sheets rolled in to single or multiwalled tubes <10 nm, predict emission frequencies, brighter and stable signal intensity, conjugate to proteins for targeting, composed of cytotoxic heavy metals, unstable in UV radiation | Used in vitro labeling of liver cells, fluorescent assays to detect antigens on cells, used in vivo cancer detection and diagnosis | More stable signals than fluorescent molecules, brighter, can bind with proteins |
|
| Dendrimers | 5–20 nm highly branched
macromolecules synthesized through
polymerization reaction, growing outward from a central core 5–10, branched structure allows high drug carriage | Cause dose and surface charge dependent hemolysis,
cytotoxic in vitro, targeted delivery of drugs in
aqueous space within liposome or intercalated in
to lipid bilayers, used in gene delivery | Show polymerization, terminal groups can be modified for drug targeting, show high drug carriage |
|
| Fullerenes | 1.5–5000 length and 0.5–20 diameter, very similar to carbon nanotubes an extended π conjugated carbon skeletons Vaporization of graphites | Heterofullerenes, 13 C labeled fullerenes, azafullerens | Higher drug delivery for brain tumors |
|
