Study of factors affecting cellulose derivatives composite in anticancer drug delivery: A comprehensive review

The targeted distribution of therapeutic molecules in cancer cells poses several challenges for biomedical applications. Drug delivery systems (DDS) are primarily designed to target cancer cells effectively to achieve maximum therapeutic effects. Cellulose is a well-known organic molecule owing to its biodegradability, biocompatibility, low toxicity, prolonged stability, and superior loading characteristics. However, cellulose composites have faced numerous drawbacks, such as higher molecular size, non-covalent interactions, poor mechanical strength, and limited water solubility. In contrast, cellulose derivatization has enhanced drug loading and release efficiency, improved mechanical strength, and mitigated drug solubility issues. This review summarized the recent advancement in cellulose-based composites such as DDS for cancer cell treatment and discussed responsive factors. The pH, temperature, magnetic nanoparticles, solubility, porosity, mechanical strength, nanoparticle size, increased time of drug release, crosslinking efficiency, etc., are major responsive assays that influence the therapeutic potential of anticancer drugs. Furthermore, overviewed the cellulose nanoformulations in sustained anticancer drug release and successfully illustrated the synthesizing methodologies as well as challenges in efficient DDS applications. Moreover, a brief overview of the interdisciplinary industrial uses of cellulose composites, including paper, textiles, and nanotechnology, is presented. Finally, cellulose-based composites provide a novel way of producing excellent DDS with enhanced therapeutic properties.