Engineering Cell-Derived Nanostructures for Therapeutic Delivery
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: 30 May 2026 | Viewed by 3
Special Issue Editor
Interests: nanoparticles; extracellular vesicles; drug delivery; nanomedicine; in vitro study; nanotoxicology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The rapidly expanding use of nature-derived nanostructures is opening new avenues for the design of bioinspired platforms with therapeutic and diagnostic potential. Some cell-derived nanostructures can be used in their native form—most notably extracellular vesicles (EVs)—while others are engineered or hybridized to achieve specific performance. Living cells, whether of animal, plant, or bacterial origin, offer a unique molecular and structural repertoire that can be engineered into functional nanostructures for drug delivery or in general nanomedicine applications. Their intrinsic biocompatibility, self-assembly capacity, and ability to interact with biological systems make them ideal building blocks for next-generation therapeutic tools. Animal cells, with their specialized functionalities, provide membranes and subcellular components that can be engineered to enhance circulation time and target precision and immune evasion. For instance, cell membrane-coated nanoparticles derived from erythrocytes, leukocytes, or stem cells preserve biological activity while improving delivery efficiency. Parallel advances in plant nanoarchitectonics have highlighted the potential of plant-derived nanostructures (PDNSs), such as exosome-like vesicles and phytochemical-based nanoparticles, which combine inherent bioactivity, low immunogenicity, and eco-sustainable production. These systems are emerging as promising tools in oncology, neuroprotection, and inflammatory disease therapy. In addition, nanostructures originating from prokaryotic cells, including bacterial extracellular vesicles (bEVs), display selective tropism and favorable biodistribution profiles, representing low-toxicity, scalable nanocarriers with high translational potential.
Dr. Tania Limongi
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- extracellular vesicles (EVs)
- cell membrane-coated nanoparticles
- plant-derived nanostructures (PDNSs)
- bacterial extracellular vesicles (bEVs)
- drug delivery
- nanomedicine
- nano-biointerfaces
- bioinspired engineering
- biomanufacturing
- translational nanotechnology
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