A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization framework
Abstract Nanocarriers are transport and encapsulation systems that primarily serve to protect and improve the dispersibility of predominantly hydrophobic active ingredients but also enable their targeted delivery and controlled release at the site of action. Nanocarriers are mainly made of either or...
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| Format: | Article |
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BMC
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Journal of Nanobiotechnology |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12951-025-03113-7 |
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| author | Sabine Gressler Christina Hipfinger Florian Part Anna Pavlicek Christian Zafiu Bernd Giese |
| author_facet | Sabine Gressler Christina Hipfinger Florian Part Anna Pavlicek Christian Zafiu Bernd Giese |
| author_sort | Sabine Gressler |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Nanocarriers are transport and encapsulation systems that primarily serve to protect and improve the dispersibility of predominantly hydrophobic active ingredients but also enable their targeted delivery and controlled release at the site of action. Nanocarriers are mainly made of either organic or inorganic materials, but various combinations of materials in complex structures are also under development. Most nanocarriers represent entities that are rationally designed to meet the functional requirements of a specific application. They can therefore be understood as Advanced Materials. Nanocarrier systems are already being used in medicine, cosmetics, agriculture, food, and household products. They are therefore used in a variety of products, ideally designed to be safe and sustainable, and may need to be registered before they can be placed on the market. Inspired by medical research, nanocarriers are also increasingly being used for precision farming (nano-agrochemicals) or products, such as air fresheners or lithium-ion batteries, and could thus be released into the environment in large quantities. To enable the identification of critical nanocarriers in subsequent investigations, a comprehensive literature review of the broad and heterogeneous research field of nanocarriers is provided, as well as an approach for categorization based on the origin and chemical composition of their constituent materials. A definition of nanocarriers based on size (1–1000 nm) and function is also proposed for their risk assessment. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c78d6d9d19884f819f49c2d286c3ce52 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1477-3155 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Nanobiotechnology |
| spelling | doaj-art-c78d6d9d19884f819f49c2d286c3ce522025-02-09T12:53:06ZengBMCJournal of Nanobiotechnology1477-31552025-02-0123112110.1186/s12951-025-03113-7A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization frameworkSabine Gressler0Christina Hipfinger1Florian Part2Anna Pavlicek3Christian Zafiu4Bernd Giese5Department of Landscape, Water and Infrastructure, Institute of Waste Management and Circularity, BOKU UniversityDepartment of Landscape, Water and Infrastructure, Institute of Safety and Risk Sciences, BOKU UniversityDepartment of Landscape, Water and Infrastructure, Institute of Waste Management and Circularity, BOKU UniversityDepartment of Biotechnology and Food Science, Institute of Synthetic Bioarchitectures, BOKU UniversityDepartment of Landscape, Water and Infrastructure, Institute of Waste Management and Circularity, BOKU UniversityDepartment of Landscape, Water and Infrastructure, Institute of Safety and Risk Sciences, BOKU UniversityAbstract Nanocarriers are transport and encapsulation systems that primarily serve to protect and improve the dispersibility of predominantly hydrophobic active ingredients but also enable their targeted delivery and controlled release at the site of action. Nanocarriers are mainly made of either organic or inorganic materials, but various combinations of materials in complex structures are also under development. Most nanocarriers represent entities that are rationally designed to meet the functional requirements of a specific application. They can therefore be understood as Advanced Materials. Nanocarrier systems are already being used in medicine, cosmetics, agriculture, food, and household products. They are therefore used in a variety of products, ideally designed to be safe and sustainable, and may need to be registered before they can be placed on the market. Inspired by medical research, nanocarriers are also increasingly being used for precision farming (nano-agrochemicals) or products, such as air fresheners or lithium-ion batteries, and could thus be released into the environment in large quantities. To enable the identification of critical nanocarriers in subsequent investigations, a comprehensive literature review of the broad and heterogeneous research field of nanocarriers is provided, as well as an approach for categorization based on the origin and chemical composition of their constituent materials. A definition of nanocarriers based on size (1–1000 nm) and function is also proposed for their risk assessment.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12951-025-03113-7NanocarrierAdvanced materialsTargeted delivery systemsNanocarrier categorizationNanoencapsulation |
| spellingShingle | Sabine Gressler Christina Hipfinger Florian Part Anna Pavlicek Christian Zafiu Bernd Giese A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization framework Journal of Nanobiotechnology Nanocarrier Advanced materials Targeted delivery systems Nanocarrier categorization Nanoencapsulation |
| title | A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization framework |
| title_full | A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization framework |
| title_fullStr | A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization framework |
| title_full_unstemmed | A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization framework |
| title_short | A systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond — definition and categorization framework |
| title_sort | systematic review of nanocarriers used in medicine and beyond definition and categorization framework |
| topic | Nanocarrier Advanced materials Targeted delivery systems Nanocarrier categorization Nanoencapsulation |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12951-025-03113-7 |
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