Hollow structures as drug carriers: Recognition, response, and release

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Drug Delivery Systems

Background:

• Hollow structures possess advantageous properties for drug delivery, including high surface-to-volume ratios, low density, large cavities, and hierarchical pores.
• These characteristics make them ideal scaffolds for encapsulating and releasing therapeutic agents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide a comprehensive review of hollow structured materials in drug delivery.
• To analyze chemical factors and reactions involved in targeting recognition, smart response, and drug release.
• To summarize the advantages and future prospects of hollow structures as drug carriers.

Main Methods:

• Literature review focusing on hollow structured materials for drug delivery applications.
• Analysis of chemical processes governing targeting, response, and release mechanisms.
• Synthesis and characterization of hollow multishelled structures for drug loading and release.

Main Results:

• Hollow nanostructures offer high loading capacity due to their internal cavities.
• Tailored structures enable controllable and sustained drug release kinetics.
• Surface modifications facilitate smart responsive drug release triggered by external stimuli.
• Hollow multishelled structures exhibit unique loading and releasing properties due to enhanced physical barriers and chemical interactions.

Conclusions:

• Hollow structured materials are highly promising for advanced drug delivery applications.
• Further research into hollow structures, particularly multishelled designs, will unlock new therapeutic potentials.
• Optimization of chemical factors and structural design is key to maximizing drug delivery efficiency.