Therapeutic Potential of Nanomedicine in Management of Alzheimer's Disease and Glioma

Nanomaterials-mediated lysosomal regulation: a robust protein-clearance approach for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease is a debilitating, progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the progressive accumulation of abnormal proteins, including amyloid plaques and intracellular tau tangles, primarily within the brain. Lysosomes, crucial intracellular organelles responsible for protein degradation, play a key role in maintaining cellular homeostasis. Some studies have suggested a link between the dysregulation of the lysosomal system and pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease. Restoring the normal physiological function of lysosomes hold the potential to reduce the pathological burden and improve the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. Currently, the efficacy of drugs in treating Alzheimer's disease is limited, with major challenges in drug delivery efficiency and targeting. Recently, nanomaterials have gained widespread use in Alzheimer's disease drug research owing to their favorable physical and chemical properties. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advances in using nanomaterials (polymeric nanomaterials, nanoemulsions, and carbon-based nanomaterials) to enhance lysosomal function in treating Alzheimer's disease. This review also explores new concepts and potential therapeutic strategies for Alzheimer's disease through the integration of nanomaterials and modulation of lysosomal function. In conclusion, this review emphasizes the potential of nanomaterials in modulating lysosomal function to improve the pathological features of Alzheimer's disease. The application of nanotechnology to the development of Alzheimer's disease drugs brings new ideas and approaches for future treatment of this disease.

Exosome-mediated delivery platform of biomacromolecules into the brain: Cetuximab in combination with doxorubicin for glioblastoma therapy

Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have become the predominant treatment modality for various diseases due to their high affinity and specificity. Although antibodies also have great potential for neurological diseases, they couldn't fully meet the therapeutic requirements due to their high molecular weight and limitations in crossing the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Herein, an innovative strategy based on exosomes (Exos) platform was developed to enhance the delivery of cetuximab (CTX) into the brain, and in combination with doxorubicin (DOX) for the synergistic targeted therapy of glioblastoma (GBM). The in vitro/vivo experiments have shown that exosomes could effectively promote BBB penetration and increase the content of CTX in glioma cells and brain lesions. Cytotoxicity and wound healing experiments have shown that CTX-Exo-DOX could significantly inhibit the proliferation of tumor cells. Finally, in vivo results showed that CTX-Exo-DOX significantly prolonged the survival time of tumor-bearing rats to 28 days, which was 1.47 times that of the DOX group. In summary, exosomes could deliver more antibodies into the brain, and CTX-Exo-DOX is a promising co-delivery system for the treatment of GBM. The results of this study will also provide a prospective strategy for antibody drugs in the treatment of neurological diseases.

Development of Hollow Gold Nanoparticles for Photothermal Therapy and Their Cytotoxic Effect on a Glioma Cell Line When Combined with Copper Diethyldithiocarbamate

Gold-based nanoparticles hold promise as functional nanomedicines, including in combination with a photothermal effect for cancer therapy in conjunction with chemotherapy. Here, we synthesized hollow gold nanoparticles (HGNPs) exhibiting efficient light absorption in the near-IR (NIR) region. Several synthesis conditions were explored and provided monodisperse HGNPs approximately 95-135 nm in diameter with a light absorbance range of approximately 600-720 nm. The HGNPs were hollow and the surface had protruding structures when prepared using high concentrations of HAuCl4. The simultaneous nucleation of a sacrificial AgCl template and Au nanoparticles may affect the resulting HGNPs. Diethyldithiocarbamate (DDTC) is metabolized from disulfiram and is a repurposed drug currently attracting attention. The chelation of DDTC with copper ion (DDTC-Cu) has been investigated for treating glioma, and here we confirmed the cytotoxic effect of DDTC-Cu towards rat C6 glioma cells in vitro. HGNPs alone were biocompatible and showed little cytotoxicity, whereas a mixture of DDTC-Cu and HGNPs was cytotoxic in a dose dependent manner. The temperature of HGNPs was increased by NIR-laser irradiation. The photothermal effect on HGNPs under NIR-laser irradiation resulted in cytotoxicity towards C6 cells and was dependent on the irradiation time. Photothermal therapy by HGNPs combined and DDTC-Cu was highly effective, suggesting that this combination approach hold promise as a future glioma therapy.