Nanotheranostics: advanced nanomedicine for the integration of diagnosis and therapy.

Abstract

Nanotherapeutics is to apply and further develop the various nanomedicine strategies such as polymer conjugations, dendrimers, micelles, liposomes, metal and inorganic nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, nanoparticles of biodegradable polymers for sustained, controlled and targeted co-delivery of diagnostic and therapeutic agents for better theranostic effects and fewer side effects. The purpose is to diagnose and treat the diseases at their earliest stage, when the diseases are most likely curable or at least treatable. Nanomedicine can be defined as application and further development of nanotechnology to solve the problems in medicine, that is, to diagnose, treat and prevent diseases at the cellular and molecular level [1]. ‘Theranostics’ refers to simultaneous integration of diagnosis and therapy. The term derived from thera(py) + (diag)nostics to merge the two fields for advanced applications [2]. Nanomedicine is to apply and further develop the various nanocarriers may include polymer conjugations, dendrimers, micelles, liposomes, metal and inorganic nanoparticles (i.e., noble metal, mesoporous silica nanoparticles, metal oxide, magnetic nanoparticles and quantum dots), nanocarbons and nanoparticles of biodegradable polymers for sustained, controlled and targeted co-delivery of diagnostic and therapeutic agents to diagnose and treat the diseases at their earliest stage, when the diseases are most likely curable or at least treatable [3]. It can be promising even for the fatal diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases and AIDS, and creates the chance to make treatment much less troublesome and prognosis bright, thus saving resources and enhancing the quality of life for the patients [4]. Theranostic nanomedicine means colloidal nanoparticles ranging in sizes from 1 to 1000 nm (1 μm). They consist of macromolecular materials/polymers/carbon nanomaterials/metals and inorganic nanoparticles in which the diagnostic and therapeutic agents are adsorbed, conjugated, entrapped and encapsulated for diagnosis and treatment simultaneously at the cellular and molecular level. Indeed, some nanomedicines have unique physicochemical properties that show applications in diagnosis and therapy such as optical properties, hyperthermia effect and photothermal ablation. For example, gold nanoparticles, magnetic nanoparticles or carbon nanotubes have intrinsic diagnostic and therapeutic properties. They act as self theranostic nanomedicines or platforms. An ideal theranostic nanomedicine would target at the diseased site, diagnose morphology and biochemical changes of the tissue/organ of interest, provide potent/effective therapy as well as possess biocompatibility and biodegradability. The theranostics field is expected to contribute to patient healthcare and safety as personalized medicine [3,4]. This editorial was carried out with a view to summarize the recent developments of advanced theranostic nanomedicine. Theranostic nanomedicine may be defined as nanomedicine that combines therapeutics and diagnostics in a nanocarrier [3]. The therapeutic agents include chemical drugs or biological drugs (i.e., proteins and peptides). The diagnostic agents commonly Nanotheranostics: advanced nanomedicine for the integration of diagnosis and therapy