Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 17, Issue 16, 2017

Inorganic nanoparticles, which can absorb and convert near infrared (NIR) light to heat to ablate cancer cells, have been widely investigated in photothermal therapy. However, the inherent poor solubility and acute systemic toxicity of these inorganic particles hinder their application in clinical practice. Polymeric nanocomposites materials containing both inorganic nanoparticles and polymers could be harnessed to achie Read More

Theranostic medicine has become more promising in cancer treatment, where the cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy are combined for early diagnosis and precise treatment with improved efficacy and reduced side effects. Nanotechnology has played a critical role in developing various nanomaterials with engendered smart functions and targeted delivery. The rapid development of structural DNA nanotechnology has en Read More

DNA can be self-assembled into programmable two-dimensional and three-dimensional nanoarchitectures with arbitrarily predetermined sizes and shapes. Because of the addressable arbitrary size and shape, great capacity of cargo loading, ability to be internalized by cells, the stability of structures under physiological conditions and excellent biocompatibility, the pristine DNA nanostructures are explored as drug vehicles i Read More

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are a heterogeneous population of immature myeloid cells that are preferentially expanded in cancer. They arise from myeloid progenitor cells that do not differentiate into mature dendritic cells (DCs), granulocytes, or macrophages, and are rather thought to play a pivotal role in immune escape and cancer progression. MDSCs are characterized by the ability to suppress T cell prolif Read More

With the progress of nanotechnology, the treatment of cancer by photothermal therapy (PTT) and photodynamic therapy (PDT) using theranostic nanomaterials based on iron oxide (Fe3O4) and gold (Au) nanoparticles (NPs) has received much attention in recent years. The Fe3O4 NPs have been used as imaging-guided PTT of cancer due to their high relaxivity, excellent contrast enhancement, and less toxicity. The Au NPs h Read More

The interaction between cancer cells and their microenvironment is an indispensable link in cancer progression that occurs on the interfaces between them and presents typical biointerfacial behavior. Recently, the cancer cell/microenvironment interface has begun to attract more attention because of its fundamental roles in cancer growth and metastasis, which is promising for the efficacy of anti-cancer drugs and Read More