Highway to Success—Developing Advanced Polymer Therapeutics

Abstract

Polymer therapeutics are advancing as an important class of drugs. Polymers have already demonstrated their value in extending the half‐life of proteins. They show great potential as delivery systems for improving the therapeutic index of drugs, via biophysical targeting and more recently with more precision targeting. They are also important for intracellular delivery of nucleic acid based drugs. The same frameworks that have been successfully applied to improve the small molecule drug development can be adopted. This approach together with improved pathophysiological disease knowledge and critical developability considerations, imperative given the size and complexity of polymer therapeutics, provides a structured framework that should improve their clinical translation and exploit their functionality and potential. Progress in understanding the right target, gaining the right tissue and cell exposure, ensuring the right safety, selecting the right patient population is discussed. The right commercial considerations are outlined and the need for a multi‐disciplinary approach is emphasized. Crucial developability factors together with scientific and technical advancements to enable pharmaceutical development of a quality robust product are addressed. It is argued that by applying this structured approach to their design and development, polymer therapeutics will continue to grow and develop as important next generation medicines.

Improving dexamethasone drug loading and efficacy in treating arthritis through a lipophilic prodrug entrapped into PLGA-PEG nanoparticles

“…PLGA is one of the most widely used polymers for NP synthesis due to its good biocompatibility, biodegradability, and capability to induce sustained drug release [16]. Polylactide-co-glycolide (PLGA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) are FDA-approved polymers and PLA-PEG nanoparticles have entered several clinical trials [17].…”

Cancer nanotechnology: current status and perspectives

“…Surface charge, size, and density can be modulated to suit applications ranging from drug-loaded hydrogels to core–shell NPs for gene therapy, and fabrication technique can be adjusted according to desired material [ 26 , 43 ]. Nanoparticle composition can be controlled to best complement the cargo properties and target, incorporating elements to increase biocompatibility, biodistribution, stability, and efficacy [ 142 ]. Most importantly, synthetic flexibility of polymer-based NPs allows for built-in functionalities that can enable specific targeting and release [ 143 ].…”

Passerini chemistries for synthesis of polymer pro-drug and polymersome drug delivery nanoparticles

“…Polymers for therapeutic delivery are required to meet stringent criteria, 1,2 including diverse functionalities to allow attachment and/or encapsulation of drugs and targeting agents, an intrinsically degradable backbone, and should be synthetically accessible in as few steps as possible. 3,4 In addition, for systemic administration, it is advantageous if the polymers can assemble into nanoscale particles with a hydrophilic exterior, in order to circulate in the bloodstream and avoid early excretion.…”