Basic concepts and recent advances in nanogels as carriers for medical applications

Abstract

Nanogels in biomedical field are promising and innovative materials as dispersions of hydrogel nanoparticles based on crosslinked polymeric networks that have been called as next generation drug delivery systems due to their relatively high drug encapsulation capacity, uniformity, tunable size, ease of preparation, minimal toxicity, stability in the presence of serum, and stimuli responsiveness. Nanogels show a great potential in chemotherapy, diagnosis, organ targeting and delivery of bioactive substances. The main subjects reviewed in this article concentrates on: (i) Nanogel assimilation in the nanomedicine domain; (ii) Features and advantages of nanogels, the main characteristics, such as: swelling capacity, stimuli sensitivity, the great surface area, functionalization, bioconjugation and encapsulation of bioactive substances, which are taken into account in designing the structures according to the application; some data on the advantages and limitations of the preparation techniques; (iii) Recent progress in nanogels as a carrier of genetic material, protein and vaccine. The majority of the scientific literature presents the multivalency potential of bioconjugated nanogels in various conditions. Today's research focuses over the overcoming of the restrictions imposed by cost, some medical requirements and technological issues, for nanogels' commercial scale production and their integration as a new platform in biomedicine.

Polyethylenimine‐Based Nanogels for Biomedical Applications

“…Moreover, PEI‐based NGs can recognize specific cell types by conjugation of targeting ligands such as galactose, mannose, transferrin, and antibodies onto the NG surfaces. Both plasmid DNA and small interfering RNA (siRNA) have been frequently involved for gene therapies of numerous diseases such as cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, and viral infections through the selective inhibition of messenger RNA (mRNA) sequences …”

Recent Developments in the Area of Click‐Crosslinked Nanocarriers for Drug Delivery

“…A number of strategies for the synthesis of nanogels have been developed, including disulfide‐based crosslinking, amine‐based crosslinking, click‐crosslinking, photo‐induced crosslinking, physical crosslinking, and heterogeneous polymerization of monomers . In addition to the crosslinking polymerizations of monomers, the crosslinking of hydrophilic polymers containing multiple functional groups with crosslinkers is also a popular method to prepare nanogels . It is possible to tune the particle size by varying polymer concentration.…”

The Role of Self-Assembling Lipid Molecules in Vaccination

“…Vaccinology is not an exception and nanoparticles are expected to have an enormous impact on future vaccine development. Among all different types of nanoparticles, including inorganic nanoparticles [56], polymeric nanoparticles [57], carbon nanotubes [58], and nanogels [59], lipid-based nanoparticles (LBNs) have been the most extensively used. This preference for lipid-derived vesicles responds not only to their high delivery efficiency but also to their capacity for delivering a large variety of cargoes and their adaptability to the requirements of the specific treatment.…”