Abstract
Protein therapeutic formulations are being widely explored as multifunctional nanotherapeutics. Challenges in ensuring susceptibility and efficacy of nanoformulation still prevail owing to various interactions with biological fluids before reaching the target site. Smart polymers with the capability of masking drugs, ease of chemical modification, and multi-stimuli responsiveness can assist controlled delivery. An active moiety like therapeutic protein has started to be known as an important biological formulation with a diverse medicinal prospect. The delivery of proteins and peptides with high target specificity has however been tedious, due to their tendency to aggregate formation in different environmental conditions. Proteins due to high chemical reactivity and poor bioavailability are being researched widely in the field of nanomedicine. Clinically, multiple nano-based formulations have been explored for delivering protein with different carrier systems. A biocompatible and non-toxic polymer-based delivery system serves to tailor the polymer or drug better. Polymers not only aid delivery to the target site but are also responsible for proper stearic orientation of proteins thus protecting them from internal hindrances. Polymers have been shown to conjugate with proteins through covalent linkage rendering stability and enhancing therapeutic efficacy prominently when dealing with the systemic route. Here, we present the recent developments in polymer-protein/drug-linked systems. We aim to address questions by assessing the properties of the conjugate system and optimized delivery approaches. Since thorough characterization is the key aspect for technology to enter into the market, correlating laboratory research with commercially available formulations will also be presented in this review. By examining characteristics including morphology, surface properties, and functionalization, we will expand different hybrid applications from a biomaterial stance applied in in vivo complex biological conditions. Further, we explore understanding related to design criteria and strategies for polymer-protein smart nanomedicines with their potential prophylactic theranostic applications. Overall, we intend to highlight protein-drug delivery through multifunctional smart polymers.
Highlights
Advancements in the development of biomaterials have provided promising alternatives for the conventional modalities of diagnostics and therapeutics
Conjugation between protein and polymer is employed by three synthetic strategies namely grafting-to, grafting-from, and grafting-through as represented in Figure 1 [50]
Various types of polymerprotein and drug-conjugated nanoformulations have been described in this review that exhibit therapeutic effects with high drug-delivering efficacy
Summary
Advancements in the development of biomaterials have provided promising alternatives for the conventional modalities of diagnostics and therapeutics. The use of biocompatible polymers in localized therapy [1], trigger-based therapy [2], and targeted delivery of drugs [3] open novel avenues for efficient therapeutic systems. Nanomaterials encapsulated inside a specific polymer shell have demonstrated excellent efficiency of targeted payload delivery and increased blood retention [6]. The increased blood retention capability can be associated with the increased molecular weight of the protein-polymer conjugate, leading to decreased kidney clearance. Some polymers exhibit a characteristic transition at a molecular level and physical level to triggers such as pH, temperature, and ion concentration [6, 7]. The nanoparticles composed of polymers such as chitosan and polyethylene glycol (PEG) offer increased stability over metallic nanoparticles and exhibit excellent biocompatibility [8, 9]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
