Nanoparticles for human liver-specific drug and gene delivery systems: in vitro and in vivo advances

Abstract

A wide variety of nanoparticles (NPs) that can deliver incorporated therapeutic materials such as compounds, proteins, genes and siRNAs to the human liver have been developed to treat liver-related diseases. This review describes NP-based drug and gene delivery systems such as liposomes (including lipoplex), polymer micelles, polymers (including polyplex) and viral vectors. It focuses upon the modification of these NPs to enhance liver specificity or delivery efficiency in vitro and in vivo. We discuss recent advances in drug and gene delivery systems specific to the human liver utilizing bio-nanocapsules comprising hepatitis B virus (HBV) envelope L protein, which has a pivotal role in HBV infection. These NP-based medicines may offer novel strategies for the treatment of liver-related diseases and contribute to the development of nanomedicines targeting other tissues.

Keywords::

• bio-nanocapsule
• cancer treatment
• drug delivery system
• enhanced permeability and retention
• gene delivery system
• hepatitis B virus
• liposome
• nanoparticle
• reticulo-endothelial system
• targeting

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Priority Areas (#18015032) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan; Research on Advanced Medical Technology from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan; Industrial Technology Research from the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO); and the Regional Research and Development Resources Utilization Program of the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST). The authors thank Katsuyuki Tanizawa, Masaharu Seno, Masakazu Ueda, Akihiko Kondo, Takashi Matsuzaki, Tadanori Yamada, Joohee Jung and Beacle (Okayama, Japan) for their help; and Yoko Matsushita, Masumi Iijima, and Noriko Shikaku for their technical help.