title: Dendrimer advances for the central nervous system delivery of therapeutics.
abstract: The effectiveness of noninvasive treatment for central nervous system (CNS) diseases is generally limited by the poor access of therapeutic agents into the CNS. Most CNS drugs cannot permeate into the brain parenchyma because of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), and overcoming this has become one of the most significant challenges in the development of CNS therapeutics. Rapid advances in nanotechnology have provided promising solutions to this challenge. This review discusses the latest applications of dendrimers in the treatment of CNS diseases with an emphasis on brain tumors. Dendrimer-mediated drug delivery, imaging, and diagnosis are also reviewed. The toxicity, biodistribution, and transport mechanisms in dendrimer-mediated delivery of CNS therapeutic agents bypassing or crossing the BBB are also discussed. Future directions and major challenges of dendrimer-mediated delivery of CNS therapeutic agents are included.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, ‡Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, §Department of Chemical and Life Science Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, Virginia 23284, United States.
authors.forename: Leyuan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yue
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001692:Biological Transport; D001814:Blood-Testis Barrier / Q000502:physiology; D002491:Central Nervous System Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002493:Central Nervous System Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy*; D050091:Dendrimers / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D036103:Nanotechnology; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations
chemical_list: D002491:Central Nervous System Agents; D050091:Dendrimers; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations