The development of low-molecular weight hydrogels for applications in cancer therapy.

Abstract

To improve the anti-cancer efficacy and to counteract the side effects of chemotherapy, a variety of drug delivery systems have been invented in past decades, but few of these systems have succeeded in clinical trials due to their respective inherent shortcomings. Recently, low-molecular weight hydrogels of peptides that self-assemble via non-covalent interactions have attracted considerable attention due to their good biocompatibility, low toxicity, inherent biodegradability as well as their convenience of design. Low-molecular weight hydrogels have already shown promise in biomedical applications as diverse as 3D-cell culture, enzyme immobilization, controllable MSC differentiation, wound healing, drug delivery etc. Here we review the recent development in the use of low-molecular weight hydrogels for cancer therapy, which may be helpful in the design of soft materials for drug delivery.

• Authors: Ran Tian, Jin Chen, Runfang Niu
• Journal: Nanoscale (Nanoscale) Vol. 6 Issue 7 Pg. 3474-82 (Apr 07 2014) ISSN: 2040-3372 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 24548933 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Review)

Chemical References

• Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic
• Biocompatible Materials
• Drug Carriers
• Hydrogels
• Peptides

Topics

• Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic (administration & dosage, chemistry, pharmacology)
• Apoptosis (drug effects)
• Biocompatible Materials (chemistry)
• Drug Carriers (chemical synthesis, chemistry)
• Humans
• Hydrogels (chemical synthesis, chemistry)
• Molecular Weight
• Nanofibers (chemistry)
• Neoplasms (drug therapy)
• Peptides (chemistry, metabolism)