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Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, is a family of chronic disorders along the gastrointestinal tract. Because of its idiopathic nature, IBD does not have a fundamental cure; current available therapies for IBD are limited to prolonged doses of immunomodulatory agents. While these treatments may reduce inflammation, limited therapeutic efficacy, inconsistency across patients, and adverse side effects from aggressive medications remain as major drawbacks. Recently, excessive production and accumulation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) also known as NETosis have been identified to exacerbate inflammatory responses and induce further tissue damage in IBD. Such discovery invited many researchers to investigate NETs as a potential therapeutic target. DNase-I is a natural agent that can effectively destroy NETs and, therefore, potentially reduce NETs-induced inflammations even without the use of aggressive drugs. However, low stability and rapid clearance of DNase-I remain as major limitations for further therapeutic applications. In this research, polymeric nanozymes were fabricated to increase the delivery and therapeutic efficacy of DNase-I. DNase-I was immobilized on the surface of polymeric nanoparticles to maintain its enzymatic properties while extending its activity in the colon. Delivery of DNase-I using this platform allowed enhanced stability and prolonged activity of DNase-I with minimal toxicity. When administered to animal models of IBD, DNase-I nanozymes successfully alleviated various pathophysiological symptoms of IBD. More importantly, DNase-I nanozyme administration successfully attenuated neutrophil infiltration and NETosis in the colon compared to free DNase-I or mesalamine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer immunotherapy, which harnesses the power of the immune system, has shown immense promise in the fight against malignancies. Messenger RNA (mRNA) stands as a versatile instrument in this context, with its capacity to encode tumor-associated antigens (TAAs), immune cell receptors, cytokines, and antibodies. Nevertheless, the inherent structural instability of mRNA requires the development of effective delivery systems. Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) have emerged as significant candidates for mRNA delivery in cancer immunotherapy, providing both protection to the mRNA and enhanced intracellular delivery efficiency. In this review, we offer a comprehensive summary of the recent advancements in LNP-based mRNA delivery systems, with a focus on strategies for optimizing the design and delivery of mRNA-encoded therapeutics in cancer treatment. Furthermore, we delve into the challenges encountered in this field and contemplate future perspectives, aiming to improve the safety and efficacy of LNP-based mRNA cancer immunotherapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibodies have been widely used to provide targeting ability and to enhance bioactivity owing to their high specificity, availability, and diversity. Recent advances in biotechnology and nanotechnology permit site-specific engineering of antibodies and their conjugation to the surfaces of nanoparticles (NPs) in various orientations through chemical conjugations and physical adhesions. This study proposes the conjugation of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) NPs with antibodies by using two distinct methods, followed by a comparison between the cell-targeting efficiencies of both techniques. Full-length antibodies were conjugated to the PLGA-poly(ethylene glycol)-carboxylic acid (PLGA-PEG-COOH) NPs through the conventional carbodiimide coupling reaction, and f(ab′)2 antibody fragments were conjugated to the PLGA-poly(ethylene glycol)-maleimide(PLGA-PEG-Mal) NPs through interactions between the f(ab′)2 fragment thiol groups and the maleimide located on the nanoparticle surface. The results demonstrate that the PLGA nanoparticles conjugated with the f(ab′)2 antibody fragments had a higher targeting efficiency in vitro and in vivo than that of the PLGA nanoparticles conjugated with the full-length antibodies. The results of this study can be built upon to design a delivery technique for drugs through biocompatible nanoparticles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]