Bioengineering Strategies for Designing Targeted Cancer Therapies

Abstract

The goals of bioengineering strategies for targeted cancer therapies are (1) to deliver a high dose of an anticancer drug directly to a cancer tumor, (2) to enhance drug uptake by malignant cells, and (3) to minimize drug uptake by nonmalignant cells. Effective cancer-targeting therapies will require both passive- and active targeting strategies and a thorough understanding of physiologic barriers to targeted drug delivery. Designing a targeted therapy includes the selection and optimization of a nanoparticle delivery vehicle for passive accumulation in tumors, a targeting moiety for active receptor-mediated uptake, and stimuli-responsive polymers for control of drug release. The future direction of cancer targeting is a combinatorial approach, in which targeting therapies are designed to use multiple targeting strategies. The combinatorial approach will enable combination therapy for delivery of multiple drugs and dual ligand targeting to improve targeting specificity. Targeted cancer treatments in development and the new combinatorial approaches show promise for improving targeted anticancer drug delivery and improving treatment outcomes.

Prospects for engineering neurons from local neocortical cell populations as cell‐mediated therapy for neurological disorders

“…Nanoparticles could be used to transport therapeutics to the leaky BBB at the injury site (Lin et al, ). All of these drug carriers can be functionalized with specific antibodies or receptor ligands for cell‐specific targeting (Alexander‐Bryant et al, ; Sanna et al, ). The PDGFR‐β receptor has already been used in the clinic to target pericytes in nonneural tissue and deliver cancer therapeutics (Bansal et al, ).…”

Towards cell-based therapeutics: A bio-inspired autonomous drug delivery system

“…This type of treatment interferes directly with specific cell molecules required for tumor growth, rather than indiscriminately targeting malignant and nonmalignant cells as is the case in traditional chemotherapy [5]. For instance, Alexander-Bryant et al introduce strategies for designing targeted cancer therapies in [6]. More precisely, they propose to deliver a high dose of anticancer drugs directly to the cancer tumor, while minimizing the drug uptake by nonmalignant cells.…”

Toxicity, pharmacokinetics, and in vivo efficacy of biotinylated chitosan surface-modified PLGA nanoparticles for tumor therapy

“…Active targeting to cancer cells is a widely acceptable strategy for drug delivery, in which ligand conjugates can directly interact with complementary moieties on the surface of target cancer cells (Alexander-Bryant et al 2013). Polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) is FDA-approved biodegradable polymer.…”