Environment Responsive Metal-Organic Frameworks as Drug Delivery System for Tumor Therapy

Nanoparticles as drug delivery systems can alter the drugs' hydrophilicity to affect drug uptake and efflux in tissues. They prevent drugs from non-specifically binding with bio-macromolecules and enhance drug accumulation at the lesion sites, improving therapy effects and reducing unnecessary side effects. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), the typical nanoparticles, a class of crystalline porous materials via self-assembled organic linkers and metal ions, exhibit excellent biodegradability, pore shape and sizes, and finely tunable chemical composition. MOFs have a rigid molecular structure, and tunable pore size can improve the encapsulation drug's stability under harsh conditions. Besides, the surface of MOFs can be modified with small-molecule ligands and biomolecule, and binding with the biomarkers which is overexpressed on the surface of cancer cells. MOFs formulations for therapeutic have been developed to effectively respond to the unique tumor microenvironment (TEM), such as high H₂O₂ levels, hypoxia, and high concentration glutathione (GSH). Thus, MOFs as a drug delivery system should avoid drugs leaking during blood circulation and releasing at the lesion sites via a controlling manner. In this article, we will summary environment responsive MOFs as drug delivery systems for tumor therapy under different stimuli.