Peptides as a therapeutic avenue for nanocarrieraided targeting of glioma
Mrunal Vitthal Wanjale & G. S. Vinod Kumar
Expert Opin Drug Deliv. 2017 Jun;14(6):811-824. doi: 10.1080/17425247.2017.1242574. Epub 2016 Oct 11.
Abstract
Introduction: Very few successful interventions have been possible in glioma therapy owing to its
aggressive nature as well as its hindrance of targeted therapy together with the limited access afforded
by the blood-brain barrier (BBB). With the advent of nanotechnology based delivery vehicles such as
micelles, dendrimers, polymer-based nanoparticles and nanogels, the breach of the BBB has been
facilitated. However, there remains the issue of targeted therapy for glioma cells. Peptide-mediated
surface modification of nanocarriers serves this purpose, extending the ability to target glioma further
than the enhanced permeability and retention effect.
Areas covered: Here we have tried to re-establish the significance of peptides that could be used in
various ways for treating glioma. Peptide-embellished nanocarriers used to deliver anticancer drugs;
nucleic acids (siRNA, miRNA); micelles or dendrimers grafted with immunogenic glioma-derived peptides
used for stimulating active immunity in vaccine therapy, glioma targets for cell penetrating
peptides and homing to specific receptors are reviewed.
Expert opinion: Peptides have multifunctional potential in targeting, BBB and cell penetration, and can
serve as antagonists of various ligands and agonists of particular over-expressed receptors as discussed
in this review. Using peptides in targeted personalized therapy would be one step forward and may
offer new avenues for glioma therapeutics.