Nanoparticle formulations for therapeutic delivery, pathogen imaging and theranostic applications in bacterial infections

Abstract

Pathogenic bacterial infections represent an ever-growing crisis, now significantly threatening life expectancy across the worldwide population and thus novel approaches to tackle this issue are urgently needed. The application of nanotechnology in recent years has opened up new horizons in the selective or specific delivery of drugs or imaging agents to infectious sites. In particular, the development of nanoparticles for both delivery of active substances and imaging of infection sites is now gathering much interest. Although still in its infancy, the field of antibacterial nanomedicines provides exciting new possibilities to combat multi-resistant bacterial infections and shows great promise for personalized medicine in antibacterial stewardship. This review examines nanoparticle-based formulations used for therapeutic delivery, pathogen tracking in diagnosis, and combined "theranostic" approaches to more effectively treating bacterial infections.

Keywords: Bacterial Infection; Diagnosis; Nanoparticles; Theranostic; Therapeutic delivery.

Figure 1

A schematic represents the theranostic nanoparticles in anti-bacterial applications. (MRI: Magnetic Resonance Imaging; IVIS: In Vivo Imaging System; ROS: Reactive Oxygen Species). Created with BioRender.com.

Figure 2

A schematic presents the mechanism of the fusogenic pSiNP. Copyright © 2018 Springer Nature

Figure 3

(A) Bio-orthogonal chemistry is used to quantitatively characterise the surface engineering of bacteria. Copyright © 2016 American Chemical Society (B) Liposome lysis is selectedly initiated by β-haemolytic bacteria, allowing quick and accurate pathogen identification. Copyright © 2017 American Chemical Society

Figure 4

(A) A schematic presents ⁶⁴Cu-liposome; PET/CT images of S. aureus Xen29 infection and injected with ⁶⁴Cu-liposomes. Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. (B) A schematic depicts MLP18 nanoliposomes for MRSA identification and elimination. Copyright © 2019 American Chemical Society.

Figure 5

Schematic approach showing the RAFT polymerization is used in the manufacture of gentamicin-NONOate nanoparticles. Copyright © 2016 The Royal Society of Chemistry

Figure 6

(A) Schematic illustration of the PPEGMA-b-P(DPA-co-HEMA)-Ce6 nanoparticles as theranostic antimicrobial agents. Copyright © 2018 The Royal Society of Chemistry (B) Theranostic fluorescent cationic polymeric nanoprobes for assessing antibacterial activity are shown in a diagram. Copyright © 2020 American Chemical Society

Figure 7

(A) A schematic presents the antibacterial activity of amphiphilic dendrimers; Molecular dynamics simulations demonstrate the interaction between dendrimer 1a and bacterial membrane. Copyright © 2022 The Royal Society of Chemistry (B) Super-resolution confocal microscopy photos of P. aeruginosa exposed to G3KL-Fluo; Confocal microscopy of P. aeruginosa treated with G3KL-Dansyl. Copyright © 2019 American Chemical Society.

Figure 8

A schematic presents AuNPs for bacterial-selective therapy. Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V.

Figure 9

(A) A diagram showing the manufactory process of Au@Ru-pAb nanocomposites; The detection of S. typhimurium in different samples. Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. (B) A schematic presents the synthetic procedures of apt-Au NNPs and the SERS spectra of Au NNPs labels for distinguishing different bacteria strains. Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V.

Figure 10

(A) A schematic presents the Au-Pd@Ag nanoprobe applied in bacterial infection. Copyright © 2020 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim. (B) Schematic diagram and the NIR-II triggered PA images for in situ Ag⁺ release tracking. Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd.

Figure 11

(A) Fluorescence microscopy showing the viabilities of E. coli and S. aureus treated with G-QDs; (B) Fluorescence microscopy showing that photoexcited G-QDs induce oxidative stress in bacterial cells. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Figure 12

A schematic presents the MOFs with bacterial-binding abilities. Copyright © 2022 American Chemical Society.

Figure 13

Fabrication and characterization of NanoPcN; Schematic illustration of the antibacterial mechanism of NanoPcN. Copyright © 2022 American Chemical Society.