Multi functional nanocarriers for tumor targeted drug delivery

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Cancer has become one of the leading causes of increased mortality. The currently employed diagnostic and therapeutic modality offer only minimal specificity towards cancerous cells and affects normal healthy cells. Targeted drug delivery systems have shown an improved efficiency in the diagnosis and treatment of various cancers, as these targeted molecules specifically reaches the tumor cells alone without exerting any undesirable effects on the normal healthy cells. Recent finding have shown that disruption of blood vasculature and lymphatics is efficient in treating various cancers. As these vessels supply nutrient, oxygen, removes wastes and helps in the metastasis; therapeutic agents targeting them will be highly useful. Of the various ligands used for targeting blood vasculature and lymphatics, peptides such as RGD, NGR etc., possess great advantage over other molecules. This review article is aimed at focusing the recent efforts and developments on the peptides as ligands for targeting tumor blood vasculature and lymphatics.

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