Nanomedicine approaches in vascular disease: a review

Nanomedicine approaches have revolutionized the treatment of cancer and vascular diseases, where the limitations of rapid nonspecific clearance, poor biodistribution and harmful side effects associated with direct systemic drug administration can be overcome by packaging the agents within sterically stabilized, long-circulating nanovehicles that can be further surface-modified with ligands to actively target cellular/molecular components of the disease. With significant advancements in genetics, proteomics, cellular and molecular biology and biomaterials engineering, the nanomedicine strategies have become progressively refined regarding the modulation of surface and bulk chemistry of the nanovehicles, control of drug release kinetics, manipulation of nanoconstruct geometry and integration of multiple functionalities on single nanoplatforms. The current review aims to capture the various nanomedicine approaches directed specifically toward vascular diseases during the past two decades. Analysis of the promises and limitations of these approaches will help identify and optimize vascular nanomedicine systems to enhance their efficacy and clinical translation in the future. From the Clinical Editor: Nanomedicine-based approaches have had a major impact on the treatment and diagnosis of malignancies and vascular diseases. This review discusses various nanomedicine approaches directed specifically toward vascular diseases during the past two decades, highlighting their advantages, limitations and offering new perspectives on future applications. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.