Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 20, 2025

Manufacture and Drug Delivery Applications of Silk Nanoparticles
Published on: October 8, 2016
Application of targeted therapy strategies with nanomedicine delivery for atherosclerosis
Le-Chun Ou1,2, Shan Zhong1,2, Jing-Song Ou3,4,5,6,7
1Department of Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, 150086, China.
Insights
Nanomedicine offers a promising approach to treat advanced atherosclerosis (AS), a major cause of heart disease. Targeted nanoparticles can effectively deliver drugs to complex plaque microstructures, reducing residual cardiovascular risk.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Atherosclerosis (AS) is the primary cause of coronary heart disease (CHD), with current treatments leaving significant residual risk.
- Advanced atherosclerotic plaques are linked to recurrent cardiovascular events, and existing therapies are less effective for these complex lesions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the application of nanomedicine delivery systems for treating advanced atherosclerosis.
- To evaluate the clinical potential of novel nanodrugs in managing residual cardiovascular risk.
Main Methods:
- Review of nanomedicine strategies targeting microstructures in advanced atherosclerotic plaques (neovascularization, calcification, cholesterol crystals).
- Analysis of targeted nanoparticle delivery for anti-atherosclerosis therapy.
- Assessment of preliminary clinical feasibility and safety data for nanotherapeutics.
Main Results:
- Nanoparticles show potential for targeted delivery to advanced atherosclerotic plaque microstructures.
- Targeted nanomedicine represents a key strategy to mitigate residual risk in cardiovascular disease.
- Clinical feasibility and safety of nanotechnology for AS treatment are being confirmed.
Conclusions:
- Nanomedicine holds significant promise for advancing the treatment of advanced atherosclerosis.
- Targeted nanoparticle delivery offers a novel therapeutic avenue to reduce residual cardiovascular risk.
- Further clinical investigation of nanodrugs is warranted for their therapeutic application in AS.
Abstract:
Atherosclerosis (AS) is the main pathological cause of coronary heart disease (CHD). Current clinical interventions including statin drugs can effectively reduce acute myocardial infarction and stroke to some extent, but residual risk remains high. The current clinical treatment regimens are relatively effective for early atherosclerotic plaques and can even reverse their progression. However, the effectiveness of these treatments for advanced AS is not ideal, and advanced atherosclerotic plaques-the pathological basis of residual risk-can still cause a recurrence of acute cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events. Recently, nanomedicine-based treatment strategies have been extensively used in antitumor therapy, and also shown great potential in anti-AS therapy. There are many microstructures in late-stage atherosclerotic plaques, such as neovascularization, micro-calcification, and cholesterol crystals, and these have become important foci for targeted nanomedicine delivery. The use of targeted nanoparticles has become an important strategy for the treatment of advanced AS to further reduce the residual risk of cardiovascular events. Furthermore, the feasibility and safety of nanotechnology in clinical treatment have been preliminarily confirmed. In this review, we summarize the application of nanomedicine delivery in the treatment of advanced AS and the clinical value of several promising nanodrugs.
Related Concept Videos
Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
Atherosclerosis III: Management
Atherosclerosis IV: Nursing Management

