Nanomedicine-Driven Therapeutic Interventions of Autophagy and Stem Cells in The Management of Alzheimer’s Disease

Abstract

Drug-loaded, brain-targeted nanocarriers could be a promising tool in overcoming the challenges associated with Alzheimer’s disease therapy. These nanocargoes are enormously flexible to functionalize and facilitate the delivery of drugs to brain cells by bridging the blood–brain barrier and into brain cells. To date, modifications have included nanoparticles (NPs) coating with tunable surfactants/phospholipids, covalently attaching polyethylene glycol chains (PEGylation), and tethering different targeting ligands to cell-penetrating peptides in a manner that facilitates their entry across the BBB and downregulates various pathological hallmarks as well as intra- and extracellular signaling pathways. This review provides a brief update on drug-loaded, multifunctional nanocarriers and the therapeutic intervention of autophagy and stem cells in the management of Alzheimer’s disease.

Graphical abstract

Keywords::

• Alzheimer’s disease
• amyloid-β
• autophagy
• brain targeting
• gene therapy
• nanoparticles
• stem cell
• theranostics

Author contributions

All authors contributed equally to this article.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors extend their appreciation to the Deputyship for Research & Innovation, Ministry of Education, Saudi Arabia for funding this research work through project number QU-IF-4-2-3-28841. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Acknowledgments

The authors thank to Qassim University for technical support.

Additional information

Funding

The authors extend their appreciation to the Deputyship for Research & Innovation, Ministry of Education, Saudi Arabia for funding this research work through project number QU-IF-4-2-3-28841. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.