Delivery strategies based on surface-modified nanocarriers conjugated with biomolecular ligands targeting liver...

Surface modification considerably enhances the functional properties of nanocarriers for drug delivery. Ligand modification represents an effective surface functionalisation strategy, which is performed using common ligand molecules such as sugars, peptides and other functional small-molecule compounds. These ligands bind to the nanocarrier surfaces through chemical covalent bonding or physical adsorption, thereby enabling specific targeting of corresponding receptors to facilitate selective delivery. This review systematically summarised diverse strategies for ligand-modified nanocarriers targeting the liver and their effects on nanocarrier performance. This review has also examined the potential challenges in current research on hepatic targeting of drugs and the future directions in this field. We expect that ligand-modified nanocarriers will play an increasingly important role in the treatment of liver diseases.