Nucleotides Entrapped in Liposome Nanovesicles as Tools for Therapeutic and Diagnostic Use in Biomedical Applications

The use of nucleotides for biomedical applications is an old desire in the scientific community. As we will present here, there are references published over the past 40 years with this intended use. The main problem is that, as unstable molecules, nucleotides require some additional protection to extend their shelf life in the biological environment. Among the different nucleotide carriers, the nano-sized liposomes proved to be an effective strategic tool to overcome all these drawbacks related to the nucleotide high instability. Moreover, due to their low immunogenicity and easy preparation, the liposomes were selected as the main strategy for delivery of the mRNA developed for COVID-19 immunization. For sure this is the most important and relevant example of nucleotide application for human biomedical conditions. In addition, the use of mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 has increased interest in the application of this type of technology to other health conditions. For this review article, we will present some of these examples, especially focused on the use of liposomes to protect and deliver nucleotides for cancer therapy, immunostimulatory activities, enzymatic diagnostic applications, some examples for veterinarian use, and the treatment of neglected tropical disease.

Automated summary

The use of nucleotides in biomedical applications has been a longstanding desire in the scientific community. Nucleotides are unstable molecules and require additional protection to prolong their shelf life in a biological environment. Nano-sized liposomes have proven to be an effective tool for overcoming the instability of nucleotides. Due to their low immunogenicity and ease of preparation, liposomes have been selected as the main strategy for delivering mRNA in COVID-19 immunization. This review article presents examples of liposomes used to protect and deliver nucleotides for cancer therapy, immunostimulatory activities, enzymatic diagnostic applications, veterinarian use, and the treatment of neglected tropical diseases.