Polymeric nanomaterials have emerged as a promising platform in the field of nanomedicine, specifically in theranostics, where both diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities are combined. With the progress made in therapeutic and diagnostic techniques, there is an urgent need to combine imaging capabilities with these functions into one integrated platform that can evaluate the effectiveness of treatments. By incorporating targeting ligands like antibodies, peptides, or aptamers, these nanomaterials can selectively recognize and image tumors, enabling early detection and accurate diagnosis. Furthermore, they offer various therapeutic interventions such as photothermal therapy, photodynamic therapy, and gene therapy, demonstrating their versatility in synergistic combination therapies and multimodal treatments. The integration of ligands and simultaneous delivery of imaging and pharmaceutical entities seek to facilitate the real-time tracking of disease advancement and treatment effectiveness. Therefore the selection of suitable nanovectors is vital in theranostics, where specific characteristics like biocompatibility, high loading capacity, biodegradability, and surface functionality are essential in the design of nanotheranostic carrier. Here we provide a comprehensive overview of the current status of polymeric nanomaterials and their applications in different theranostic aspects, especially cancer therapy. Besides, the chapter highlights the design principles, synthesis methods, and multifunctional properties, as well as showcasing their potential for precise targeted drug delivery, diagnosis, active monitoring, and effective treatments taking into consideration that polymeric nanomaterials have a significant role in the field of theranostics with a great promise for both personalized and predictive medicine.
The role of nontoxic and biodegradable polymers is crucial not only for the development of drug carriers but also for the synthesis of various medical appliances such as sutures and stents. People around the world suffer from deadly diseases, one of which is cancer. However, the grief of the world has been heard by scientists around the world, leading to the development of new drugs. Even though the drugs have been developed, their absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity properties remain a concern. Therefore these valuable drugs need to be carried into the body toward the targeted cancer cells using a suitable vehicle. One such kind of drug transporter is polyglutamic acid (PGA). Due to their less cytotoxic behavior toward normal cells, easy degradability, and controlled and prolonged release of drugs through them, they have been chosen as one of the polymers suitable for medical use. This chapter deals with the synthesis and various applications of PGA in the field of medical science.
Cancer is one of the most devastating illnesses that has become the second most deadly disease all over the world. Advancements in current therapies including surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and understanding of tumor biology have achieved clinical management of cancer to some extent but the threat is still there and giving the alarming signs. Even though patient survival rates have increased, metastasis and other late-stage diagnosed tumors are still linked to high 5-year mortality rates. Therapeutic oligonucleotides (TOs) that have been proven most promising in many serious illnesses are also becoming a crucial part of cancer therapeutics, specifically for undruggable targets, due to their specificity at the molecular level modulation of gene expression responsible for the disease. The entire therapeutic potential of these oligonucleotides depends on their safe and efficient delivery. Chitosan has been well investigated for its advantages in gene therapy and favored over other polymers due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, and tunable functional groups that can be tailored for targeting via specific agents. In this chapter, we discussed the studies of chitosan nanoparticles for the delivery of oligonucleotides and in disease diagnosis as well.
