title: Polypeptides and polyaminoacids in drug delivery.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Advances achieved over the last few years in drug delivery have provided novel and versatile possibilities for the treatment of various diseases. Among the biomaterials applied in this field, it is worth highlighting the increasing importance of polyaminoacids and polypeptides. The appealing properties of these polymers are very promising for the design of novel compositions in a variety of drug delivery applications.
  
  
  METHODS
  This review provides an overview on the general characteristics of polyaminoacids and polypeptides and briefly discusses different synthetic pathways for their production. This is followed by a detailed description of different drug delivery applications of these polymers, emphasizing those examples that already reached advanced preclinical development or have entered clinical trials.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Polyaminoacids and polypeptides are gaining much attention in drug delivery due to their exceptional properties. Their application as polymers for drug delivery purposes has been sped up by the significant achievements related to their synthesis. Certainly, cancer therapy has benefited the most from these advances, although other fields such as vaccine delivery and alternative administration routes are also being successfully explored. The design of new entities based on polyaminoacids and polypeptides and the improved insight gained in drug delivery guarantee exciting findings in the near future.
authors.affiliation: University of Santiago de Compostela, School of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Technology, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
authors.forename: José Vicente
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: González-Aramundiz
authors.forename: María Victoria
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Lozano
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sousa-Herves
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fernandez-Megia
authors.forename: Noemi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Csaba
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D002626:Chemistry, Pharmaceutical; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods*; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D008081:Liposomes / Q000737:chemistry; D008823:Micelles; D008863:Microspheres; D049329:Nanostructures; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry*; D058105:Polymerization; D011108:Polymers / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D008081:Liposomes; D008823:Micelles; D010455:Peptides; D011108:Polymers