Nanocarriers mediated targeted drug delivery for the browning based treatment of obesity

Abstract

Obesity (BMI>30kg/m2) is a metabolic abnormality facilitating type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and systemic inflammation. Despite identifying multiple molecular targets, conventional pharmacotherapies such as agonists, CNS agents, and mitochondrial uncouplers fail because of poor tissue selectivity and various off-target effects. This essay evaluates different nanocarrier-based drug delivery systems for the therapy of adipose tissue, focusing on browning-based reprogramming. Browning white adipose tissue by increased UCP 1 expression in thermogenesis is a promising approach to enhance energy expenditure. Strategies like photodynamic therapy-based ultrasmall nanoparticles, PLGA nanoparticles-mediated notch inhibition, ASC-targeting nanoparticles, and dual-targeted rosiglitazone nanoparticles are discussed in this article. These strategies illustrated that engineered nanoparticles can improve the accumulation of drugs in adipose tissue with sustained drug release and with minimum toxicity. These findings collectively explain that browning-based nanocarriers can be a promising therapeutic approach. However, further investigation into their translational and clinical challenges is mandatory.