title: The smart targeting of nanoparticles.
abstract: One major challenge in nanomedicine is the selective delivery of nanoparticles to diseased tissues. Nanoparticle delivery systems require targeting for specific delivery to pathogenic sites when enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) is not suitable or inefficient. Nanoparticle functionalization is a widely-used technique for targeting ligand conjugation; these ligands possess inherent abilities to direct nanoparticle selective binding. This review illustrates methods of ligand-nanoparticle functionalization, provides a cross-section of various ligand classes, including small molecules, peptides, antibodies, engineered proteins, or nucleic acid aptamers, and discusses some unconventional approaches currently under investigation.
authors.affiliation: Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Carolina Center for Genome Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7568, USA. rihe_liu@unc.edu.
authors.forename: Adam D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Friedman
authors.forename: Sarah E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Claypool
authors.forename: Rihe
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D015195:Drug Design; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D050997:Nanomedicine / Q000379:methods; D053758:Nanoparticles; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D014018:Tissue Distribution
chemical_list: D008024:Ligands; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations