Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 19, 2026

Site-Directed Immobilization of Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2 to Solid Surfaces by Click Chemistry
Published on: March 29, 2018
Drug delivery systems functionalized with bone mineral seeking agents for bone targeted therapeutics
S G Rotman1, D W Grijpma2, R G Richards3
1AO Research Institute Davos, Switzerland; MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, Department of Biomaterials Science and Technology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
The systemic administration of drugs to treat bone diseases is often associated with poor uptake of the drug in the targeted tissue, potential systemic toxicity and suboptimal efficacy. In order to overcome these limitations, many micro- and nano-sized drug carriers have been developed for the treatment of bone pathologies that exhibit specific affinity for bone. Drug carriers can be functionalized with bone mineral seekers (BMS), creating a targeted drug delivery system (DDS) which is able to bind to bone and release therapeutics directly at the site of interest. This class of advanced DDS is of tremendous interest due to their strong affinity to bone, with great expectation to treat life-threatening bone disorders such as osteomyelitis, osteosarcoma or even osteoporosis. In this review, we first explain the mechanisms behind the affinity of several well-known BMS to bone, and then we present several effective approaches allowing the incorporation BMS into advanced DDS. Finally, we report the therapeutic applications of BMS based DDS under development or already established. Understanding the mechanisms behind the biological activity of recently developed BMS and their integration into advanced therapeutic delivery systems are essential prerequisites for further development of bone-targeting therapies with optimal efficacy.
Related Concept Videos
Modified-Release Drug Delivery Systems: Site-Targeted
Site-Targeted Drug Delivery Systems: Polymeric Carriers
Modified-Release Drug Delivery Systems: Classification
Modified-Release Drug Delivery Systems: Stimuli-Activated
Drug Delivery Systems: Different Types
Drug Distribution: Tissue Binding
For...

