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Cancer nanomedicines targeting tumor extracellular pH

Li Tian1, You Han Bae

  • 1Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA.

Colloids and Surfaces. B, Biointerfaces
|November 15, 2011
PubMed

Insights

This review explores polymeric nanomedicines targeting tumor extracellular pH (pH(e)). Targeting based on tumor acidity offers a promising strategy to overcome challenges in specific tumor cell delivery.

Area of Science:

  • Nanomedicine
  • Oncology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Tumor-specific targeting remains a challenge in nanomedicine due to tumor heterogeneity.
  • Hypoxia is common in solid tumors, leading to extracellular matrix acidification.
  • Tumor extracellular pH (pH(e)) changes present a potential targeting avenue.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review polymeric nanomedicine systems designed to target the acidic tumor extracellular pH (pH(e)).
  • To highlight strategies for exploiting tumor microenvironment characteristics for enhanced drug delivery.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of polymeric nanomedicines.
  • Analysis of studies focusing on pH-responsive nanocarriers.
  • Discussion of targeting mechanisms based on tumor extracellular pH.

Main Results:

  • Polymeric nanomedicines can be engineered to respond to the acidic tumor extracellular pH.
  • pH-targeting strategies show potential for improving specificity and efficacy.
  • Tumor microenvironment-responsive nanomedicines offer advantages over non-specific approaches.

Conclusions:

  • Targeting tumor extracellular pH (pH(e)) with polymeric nanomedicines is a viable strategy.
  • Exploiting tumor acidity can enhance nanomedicine delivery and therapeutic outcomes.
  • Further research into pH-responsive nanomedicines is warranted for cancer therapy.

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