title: Environmental pH-sensitive polymeric micelles for cancer diagnosis and targeted therapy.
abstract: The delivery and control over the release of hydrophobic imaging markers for cancer diagnosis or pharmaceutical agents for targeted therapy are of considerable interest. Nano-sized pH-sensitive polymeric micelles that rely on the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) of vasculature and the low-pH microenvironment in cancer tissue are emerging as stimuli-responsive targeted therapies that can simultaneously release diagnostic and therapeutic agents into a cancerous region. This review focuses on the developments of pH-sensitive polymeric micelles and their biomedical applications in cancer diagnosis and targeted therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Theranostic Macromolecules Research Center, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Guang Hui
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Doo Sung
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations / Q000737:chemistry*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008823:Micelles; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D008823:Micelles; D011108:Polymers