Nanomedicines for kidney diseases

Abstract

Nanomedicines have been the subject of great interest for the treatment, diagnosis, and research of disease; however, few specifically address kidney disorders. Nanotechnology can confer significant benefits to medicine, such as the targeted delivery of drugs to specific tissues. Nanomedicines in the clinic have increased drug solubility, reduced off-target side effects, and provided novel diagnostic tools. There is an increasing cohort of nanomaterials that may have implications for kidney disease. Here, we review nanomaterial properties that are potentially applicable to kidney research and therapy, and we highlight clinical areas of need that may benefit from kidney nanomedicines.

Keywords: diagnostics; drug development; imaging; nanoparticles; theranostics; therapeutics.

Figure 1

Major sites of nanoparticle localization in the body and kidneys. (Left) Major sites nanoparticle localization to different major organs in the body and hypothesized mechanisms of uptake. (Right) Strategies for targeting nanoparticles to renal tissues and hypothesized mechanisms of localization.

Figure 2

Fluorescence plus CT overlay focused on the kidneys of a mouse treated with mesoscale nanoparticles showing localization and relatively homogenous distribution throughout the kidneys. Reprinted with permission from Williams RM, Shah J, Ng BD, Minton DR, Gudas LJ, Park CY, and Heller DA. Mesoscale Nanoparticles Selectively Target the Renal Proximal Tubule Epithelium. Nano Lett 2015; 15: 2358–2364. Copyright 2015 American Chemical Society (14).