Nanomedicine for Diagnosis and Treatment of Atherosclerosis

With the changing disease spectrum, atherosclerosis has become increasingly prevalent worldwide and the associated diseases have emerged as the leading cause of death. Due to their fascinating physical, chemical, and biological characteristics, nanomaterials are regarded as a promising tool to tackle enormous challenges in medicine. The emerging discipline of nanomedicine has filled a huge application gap in the atherosclerotic field, ushering a new generation of diagnosis and treatment strategies. Herein, based on the essential pathogenic contributors of atherogenesis, as well as the distinct composition/structural characteristics, synthesis strategies, and surface design of nanoplatforms, the three major application branches (nanodiagnosis, nanotherapy, and nanotheranostic) of nanomedicine in atherosclerosis are elaborated. Then, state-of-art studies containing a sequence of representative and significant achievements are summarized in detail with an emphasis on the intrinsic interaction/relationship between nanomedicines and atherosclerosis. Particularly, attention is paid to the biosafety of nanomedicines, which aims to pave the way for future clinical translation of this burgeoning field. Finally, this comprehensive review is concluded by proposing unresolved key scientific issues and sharing the vision and expectation for the future, fully elucidating the closed loop from atherogenesis to the application paradigm of nanomedicines for advancing the early achievement of clinical applications. This review offers an up-to-date standpoint on advanced nanomaterials in atherosclerotic diagnostic imaging and/or therapy, biosafety, challenges, and prospects based on the pathophysiology and optional animal models of atherosclerosis and the rational design concepts of nanoplatforms.image

Automated summary

This article provides a detailed overview of the three major application branches of nanomedicine in atherosclerosis, as well as summarizing the latest research in the field. It emphasizes the intrinsic interaction/relationship between nanomedicines and atherosclerosis, with a specific focus on the biosafety of nanomedicines. The article concludes by proposing unresolved key scientific issues and sharing the vision and expectation for the future.