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Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery: Applications and Perspectives

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Nanoscience".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 April 2026) | Viewed by 1374

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nanotechnology plays a multitude of roles in expanding the pharmacological and therapeutic properties of conventional drugs. Nanosized and/or nanostructured carriers can be investigated at the cellular level. For example, only a small number of molecules, such as alcohol and caffeine, have been found to cross the blood–brain barrier. This type of selective permeability remains the main barrier to the treatment of many central nervous system diseases. Nanocarriers such as dendrimers, liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles, mesoporous nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, and metallic nanoparticles are applied as enhanced carriage systems for targeted delivery at sites of injured areas in the human body.

Despite several disadvantages, nanotechnology-based delivery systems help to address many of the current drug delivery problems since they can adjust to even the smallest changes in the surrounding cellular environment. In addition to exploiting the opportunities provided by nanotechnology, we need to create strict guidelines to make up for these weaknesses. It is widely anticipated that nanotechnology will continue to develop and permeate many areas of science and daily life in the years to come. It is crucial to keep in mind that the field of nanotechnology in the healthcare sector will only expand in the future. In this Special Issue, we offer a collection of some significant takeaways on the delivery of nanodrugs from these points of view.

The aim of this Special Issue is to bring together original and high-quality research papers covering the most recent advances, as well as reviews articles, on the topic of nanotechnology in drug delivery.

In advance, we would like to gratefully acknowledge the authors and reviewers who will participate in the elaboration of this Special Issue and contribute to the development of research based on the matter of nanotechnology in drug delivery.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Ádám Juhász
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • nanostructured materials
  • drug delivery
  • drug–carrier interactions
  • hydrogel
  • aerogels
  • associated colloids
  • surfactants
  • macromolecules
  • blood–brain barrier
  • controlled release

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

23 pages, 3358 KB  
Article
Liposomal Vitamin C as a Modulator of the Efficacy of Ceralasertib Therapy in Ovarian Cancer
by Patrycja Gralewska-Zając, Aleksandra Przybylska, Marek Langner, Magdalena Przybyło, Agnieszka Marczak and Aneta Rogalska
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(6), 2630; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27062630 - 13 Mar 2026
Viewed by 796
Abstract
Clinical evidence suggests that vitamin C (VitC) may enhance the efficacy of cancer chemotherapy. However, its high oxidating and reducing activity results in low stability in physiological fluids, which may compromise its supportive role in cancer therapies. VitC stability improves when located in [...] Read more.
Clinical evidence suggests that vitamin C (VitC) may enhance the efficacy of cancer chemotherapy. However, its high oxidating and reducing activity results in low stability in physiological fluids, which may compromise its supportive role in cancer therapies. VitC stability improves when located in a region where water activity is reduced and exposure to a limited amount of ferrous ions. This can be achieved when VitC is encapsulated in liposomes. Here, we present a novel combinatorial effect of a liposomal formulation of vitamin C (LVC, liposomal VitC) and an ataxia-telangiectasia and Rad3-related (ATR) kinase inhibitor (ATRi, ceralasertib) on cancer cells. The cytotoxic effects of vitamin C, LVC and ATRi were evaluated using spectrophotometric and spectrofluorimetric assays, flow cytometry and Western blot. Lipid peroxidation was assessed via fluorescence microscopy and quantified by spectrofluorimetric assays. DNA damage was examined by Western blot. The combination has higher efficacy than ceralasertib alone in genetically diverse ovarian cancer cell lines. LVC offers protective effects when used as an adjuvant during anticancer therapy. We found that the inhibition of the ATR pathway in the presence of LVC results in increased intracellular calcium levels, elevated lipid peroxidation, and higher Fe2+ concentrations. The upregulation of ROS, together with the increased expression of long-chain-fatty-acid—CoA ligase 4 (ACSL4) following co-treatment with ATRi and LVC, indicates the activation of ferroptotic pathways. The formation of DNA double-strand breaks suggests replication fork collapse. Our findings demonstrates that this synthetic targeted therapy, combining a novel liposomal formulation of VitC with an ATR inhibitor, not only enhances DNA damage and the cytotoxic efficacy of ceralasertib but also effectively drives ovarian cancer cells toward cell death. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery: Applications and Perspectives)
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