Targeted delivery of small noncoding RNA for glioblastoma

Non-coding RNAs: emerging biomarkers and therapeutic targets in cancer and inflammatory diseases

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have a significant role in gene regulation, especially in cancer and inflammatory diseases. ncRNAs, such as microRNA, long non-coding RNAs, and circular RNAs, alter the transcriptional, post-transcriptional, and epigenetic gene expression levels. These molecules act as biomarkers and possible therapeutic targets because aberrant ncRNA expression has been directly connected to tumor progression, metastasis, and response to therapy in cancer research. ncRNAs' interactions with multiple cellular pathways, including MAPK, Wnt, and PI3K/AKT/mTOR, impact cellular processes like proliferation, apoptosis, and immune responses. The potential of RNA-based therapeutics, such as anti-microRNA and microRNA mimics, to restore normal gene expression is being actively studied. Additionally, the tissue-specific expression patterns of ncRNAs offer unique opportunities for targeted therapy. Specificity, stability, and immune responses are obstacles to the therapeutic use of ncRNAs; however, novel strategies, such as modified oligonucleotides and targeted delivery systems, are being developed. ncRNA profiling may result in more individualized and successful treatments as precision medicine advances, improving patient outcomes and creating early diagnosis and monitoring opportunities. The current review aims to investigate the roles of ncRNAs as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets in cancer and inflammatory diseases, focusing on their mechanisms in gene regulation and their implications for non-invasive diagnostics and targeted therapies. A comprehensive literature review was conducted using PubMed and Google Scholar, focusing on research published between 2014 and 2025. Studies were selected based on rigorous inclusion criteria, including peer-reviewed status and relevance to ncRNA roles in cancer and inflammatory diseases. Non-English, non-peer-reviewed, and inconclusive studies were excluded. This approach ensures that the findings presented are based on high-quality and relevant sources.

RNA Therapeutics for the Cardiovascular System

RNA therapeutics hold significant promise in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. RNAs are biologically diverse and functionally specific and can be used for gain- or loss-of-function purposes. The effectiveness of mRNA-based vaccines in the recent COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly proven the benefits of an RNA-based approach. RNA-based therapies are becoming more common as a treatment modality for cardiovascular disease. This is most evident in hypertension where several small interfering RNA-based drugs have proven to be effective in managing high blood pressure in several clinical trials. As befits a rapidly burgeoning field, there is significant interest in other classes of RNA. Revascularization of the infarcted heart through an mRNA drug is under clinical investigation. mRNA technology may provide the platform for the expression of paracrine factors for myocardial protection and regeneration. Emergent technologies on the basis of microRNAs and gene editing are tackling complex diseases in a novel fashion. RNA-based gene editing offers hope of permanent cures for monogenic cardiovascular diseases, and long-term control of complex diseases such as essential hypertension, as well. Likewise, microRNAs are proving effective in regenerating cardiac muscle. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the current landscape of RNA-based therapies for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. The review describes the large number of RNA molecules that exist with a discussion of the clinical development of each RNA type. In addition, the review also presents a number of avenues for future development.

Cell and gene therapy in neuro-oncology

The majority of primary brain tumors are gliomas, among which glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common malignant brain tumor in adults. GBM has a median survival of 18-24 months, and despite extensive research it remains incurable, thus novel therapies are urgently needed. The current standard of care is a combination of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, but still remains ineffective due to the invasive nature and high recurrence of gliomas. Gene therapy is a versatile treatment strategy investigated for multiple tumor types including GBM. In gene therapy, a variety of vectors are employed to deliver genes designed for different antitumoral effects. Also, over the past decades, stem cell biology has provided a new approach to cancer therapies. Stem cells can be used as regenerative medicine, therapeutic carriers, drug targeting, and generation of immune cells. Stem cell-based therapy allows targeted therapy that spares healthy brain tissue as well as establishes a long-term antitumor response by stimulating the immune system and delivering prodrug, metabolizing genes, or even oncolytic viruses. This chapter describes the latest developments and the current trends in gene and cell-based therapy against GBM from both preclinical and clinical perspectives, including different gene therapy delivery systems, molecular targets, and stem cell therapies.

Tumor targeting and therapeutic assessments of RNA nanoparticles carrying α9-nAChR aptamer and anti-miR-21 in triple-negative breast cancers

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is highly aggressive with a poor prognosis because of a lack of cell markers as drug targets. α9-Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) is expressed abundantly in TNBC; thus, it is a valuable biomarker for TNBC detection and treatment. In this study, we utilized thermodynamically stable three-way junction (3WJ) packaging RNA (pRNA) as the core to construct RNA nanoparticles with an α9-nAChR RNA aptamer as a targeting ligand and an anti-microRNA-21 (miR-21) as a therapeutic module. We compared the configuration of the two RNA nanoparticles and found that 3WJ-B-α9-nAChR-aptamer fluorescent RNA nanoparticles (3WJ-B-α9-apt-Alexa) exhibited better specificity for α9-nAChR in TNBC cells compared with 3WJ-C-α9-nAChR. Furthermore, 3WJ-B-α9-apt-Alexa bound more efficiently to TNBC patient-derived xenograft (PDX) tumors than 3WJ fluorescent RNA nanoparticles (3WJ-Alexa) with little or no accumulation in healthy organs after systemic injection in mice. Moreover, 3WJ-B-α9-nAChR-aptamer RNA nanoparticles carrying anti-miR-21 (3WJ-B-α9-apt-anti-miR-21) significantly suppressed TNBC-PDX tumor growth and induced cell apoptosis because of reduced miR-21 gene expression and upregulated the phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) and programmed cell death 4 (PDCD4) proteins. In addition, no pathological changes were detected upon toxicity examination of treated mice. In conclusion, the 3WJ-B-α9-nAChR-aptamer RNA nanoparticles established in this study efficiently deliver therapeutic anti-miR-21, indicating their potential as a novel TNBC therapy.

Multi-ligand functionalized blood-to-tumor sequential targeting strategies in the field of glioblastoma nanomedicine

Glioblastoma (GBM) is an unmet clinical need characterized by a standard of care (SOC) 5-year survival rate of only 5%, and a treatment mostly palliative. Significant hurdles in GBM therapies include an effective penetration of therapeutics through the brain protective barrier, namely the blood-brain barrier (BBB), and a successful therapeutic delivery to brain-invading tumor cells post-BBB crossing. These hurdles, along with the poor prognosis and critical heterogeneity of the disease, have shifted attention to treatment modalities with capacity to precisely and sequentially target (i) BBB cells, inducing blood-to-brain transport, and (ii) GBM cells, leading to a higher therapeutic accumulation at the tumor site. This sequential targeting allows therapeutic molecules to reach the brain parenchyma and compromise molecular processes that support tumor cell invasion. Besides improving formulation and pharmacokinetics constraints of drugs, nanomedicines offer the possibility of being surface functionalized with multiple possibilities of targeting ligands, while delivering the desired therapeutic cargos to the biological sites of interest. Targeting ligands exploit the site-specific expression or overexpression of specific molecules on BBB and GBM cells, triggering brain plus tumor transport. Since the efficacy of single-ligand functionalized nanomedicines is limited due to the GBM anatomical site (brain) and disease complexity, this review presents an overview of multi-ligand functionalized, BBB and GBM sequentially- and dual-targeted nanomedicines reported in literature over the last 10 years. The role of the BBB in GBM progression, treatment options, and the multiple possibilities of currently available targeting ligands will be summarized. This article is categorized under: Nanotechnology Approaches to Biology > Nanoscale Systems in Biology Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease.

Emerging extracellular vesicle-based carriers for glioblastoma diagnosis and therapy

Glioblastoma (GBM) treatment is still a big clinical challenge because of its highly malignant, invasive, and lethal characteristics. After treatment with the conventional therapeutic paradigm of surgery combined with radio- and chemotherapy, patients bearing GBMs generally exhibit a poor prognosis, with high mortality and a high disability rate. The main reason is the existence of the formidable blood-brain barrier (BBB), aggressive growth, and the infiltration nature of GBMs. Especially, the BBB suppresses the delivery of imaging and therapeutic agents to lesion sites, and thus this leads to difficulties in achieving a timely diagnosis and treatment. Recent studies have demonstrated that extracellular vesicles (EVs) exhibit favorable merits including good biocompatibility, a strong drug loading capacity, long circulation time, good BBB crossing efficiency, specific targeting to lesion sites, and high efficiency in the delivery of a variety of cargos for GBM therapy. Importantly, EVs inherit physiological and pathological molecules from the source cells, which are ideal biomarkers for molecularly tracking the malignant progression of GBMs. Herein, we start by introducing the pathophysiology and physiology of GBMs, followed by presenting the biological functions of EVs in GBMs with a special focus on their role as biomarkers for GBM diagnosis and as messengers in the modulation of the GBM microenvironment. Furthermore, we provide an update on the recent progress of using EVs in biology, functionality, and isolation applications. More importantly, we systematically summarize the most recent advances of EV-based carriers for GBM therapy by delivering different drugs including gene/RNA-based drugs, chemotherapy drugs, imaging agents, and combinatory drugs. Lastly, we point out the challenges and prospects of future research on EVs for diagnosing and treating GBMs. We hope this review will stimulate interest from researchers with different backgrounds and expedite the progress of GBM treatment paradigms.

Small interfering RNA (siRNA)-based therapeutics

In early studies in simple organisms and mammalian cell lines, small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules were found to allow experimental cleavage of intracellular messenger RNA (mRNA; the transcription product of a cell gene), reducing the levels of the proteins that would otherwise be formed by the action of the mRNA, thereby 'silencing' a specific gene. Researchers subsequently assessed the effects of this class of molecule in patients with various genetic conditions (eg, hereditary amyloidosis) that could benefit from reductions in the excessive quantities of harmful proteins (eg, amyloid). Due to the hydrophilic (non-fat-soluble) nature of the molecules, they have been formulated as lipid nanoparticles to aid transport into cells or conjugated to molecules with an ability to target certain cells in the body (eg, hepatocytes) to aid specificity of action. Their intracellular effects may last up to several months before they are broken down and inactivated. As they need to be composed of an exact complementary sequence to be able to cleave the target mRNA, they are thought to have few unwanted effects apart from infusion or injection site reactions. Several siRNA medicines have been licensed and many other products are in development for genetic hepatic, cardiovascular and ocular conditions.

Optimization of Tumor Targeting Gold Nanoparticles for Glioblastoma Applications

Glioblastoma brain tumors represent an aggressive form of gliomas that is hallmarked by being extremely invasive and aggressive due to intra and inter-tumoral heterogeneity. This complex tumor microenvironment makes even the newer advancements in glioblastoma treatment less effective long term. In developing newer treatment technologies against glioblastoma, one should tailor the treatment to the tumor microenvironment, thus allowing for a more robust and sustained anti-glioblastoma effect. Here, we present a novel gold nanoparticle therapy explicitly designed for bioactivity against glioblastoma representing U87MG cell lines. We employ standard conjugation techniques to create oligonucleotide-coated gold nanoparticles exhibiting strong anti-glioblastoma behavior and optimize their design to maximize bioactivity against glioblastoma. Resulting nanotherapies are therapy specific and show upwards of 75% inhibition in metabolic and proliferative activity with stark effects on cellular morphology. Ultimately, these gold nanotherapies are a good base for designing more multi-targeted approaches to fighting against glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma Multiforme Selective Nanomedicines for Improved Anti-Cancer Treatments

Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) is a devastating disease with a low survival rate and few efficacious treatment options. The fast growth, late diagnostics, and off-target toxicity of currently used drugs represent major barriers that need to be overcome to provide a viable cure. Nanomedicines (NMeds) offer a way to overcome these pitfalls by protecting and loading drugs, increasing blood half-life, and being targetable with specific ligands on their surface. In this study, the FDA-approved polymer poly (lactic-co-glycolic) acid was used to optimise NMeds that were surface modified with a series of potential GBM-specific ligands. The NMeds were fully characterised for their physical and chemical properties, and then in vitro testing was performed to evaluate cell uptake and GBM cell specificity. While all targeted NMeds showed improved uptake, only those decorated with the-cell surface vimentin antibody M08 showed specificity for GBM over healthy cells. Finally, the most promising targeted NMed candidate was loaded with the well-known chemotherapeutic, paclitaxel, to confirm targeting and therapeutic effects in C6 GBM cells. These results demonstrate the importance of using well-optimised NMeds targeted with novel ligands to advance delivery and pharmaceutical effects against diseased cells while minimising the risk for nearby healthy cells.

Utilization and Potential of RNA-Based Therapies in Cardiovascular Disease

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RNA-based therapeutics have the potential to reach previously “undruggable” pathways in cardiovascular disease

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RNA-based therapeutics constitute a vast array of technologies, including unique forms, chemistries, and modalities of delivery

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Rapid development of RNA-based vaccines was made possible by decades of foundational work

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Specificity and efficacy of targeting and determination of mechanism(s) of action remain a distinct challenge

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the largest cause of mortality worldwide. The development of new effective therapeutics is a major unmet need. The current review focuses broadly on the concept of nucleic acid (NA)–based therapies, considering the use of various forms of NAs, including mRNAs, miRNAs, siRNA, and guide RNAs, the latter specifically for the purpose of CRISPR-Cas directed gene editing. We describe the current state-of-the-art of RNA target discovery and development, the status of RNA therapeutics in the context of CVD, and some of the challenges and hurdles to be overcome.

Strategies to deliver RNA by nanoparticles for therapeutic potential

The use of a variety of RNA molecules, including messenger RNA, small interfering RNA, and microRNA, has shown great potential for prevention and therapy of many pathologies. However, this therapeutic promise has historically been limited by short in vivo half-life, lack of targeted delivery, and safety issues. Nanoparticle (NP)-mediated delivery has been a successful platform to overcome these limitations, with multiple formulations already in clinical trials and approved by the FDA. Although there is a diversity of NPs in terms of material formulation, size, shape, and charge that have been proposed for biomedical applications, specific modifications are required to facilitate sufficient RNA delivery and adequate therapeutic effect. This includes optimization of (i) RNA incorporation into NPs, (ii) specific cell targeting, (iii) cellular uptake and (iv) endosomal escape ability. In this review, we summarize the methods by which NPs can be modified for RNA delivery to achieve optimal therapeutic effects.

Utilizing RNA nanotechnology to construct negatively charged and ultrasound-responsive nanodroplets for targeted delivery of siRNA

Ultrasound nanodroplets (NDs) have been reported as a promising nanocarrier for siRNA delivery depending on its unique strengths of sonoporation. Presently, common means for NDs-mediated siRNA delivery is through electrostatic interaction, but challenges like cationic toxicity still exist. In this study, we demonstrated a novel strategy to construct negatively charged and ultrasound (US)-responsive O-carboxymethyl chitosan (O-CMS) NDs as a siRNA targeted delivery system through three-way junction of bacteriophage phi29 DNA packaging motor (3WJ-pRNA) nanotechnology. 39nt A10-3.2 aptamer targeting prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) and 21nt siRNA against cationic amino acid transporter 1 (siCAT-1) were annealed to 3WJ-pRNA scaffold via complementation with an extended sequence. The cholesterol molecule attached to one branch facilitates the 3WJ-pRNA nanoparticles anchoring onto NDs. The desired O-CMS NDs with siRNA-loading and RNA-aptamer modification (A10-3.2/siCAT-1/3WJ-NDs) were successfully prepared, which were with spherical shapes, core–shell structures and uniform in sizes (198 nm with PDI 0.3). As a main proportion of shell, O-CMC showed a certain anti-tumor effects. In vitro studies demonstrated that A10-3.2/siCAT-1/3WJ-NDs exhibited good contrast-enhanced US imaging, buffering capacity and high bio-safety, were able to deliver siCAT-1 to PSMA-overexpressed prostate cancer cells under US irradiation, thus silence the CAT-1 expression, and consequently suppressing 22RV1 cell proliferation and migration. Taken overall, our findings provide a promising strategy to develop negatively charged and US-responsive NDs for tumor-targeted siRNA delivery.

RNA Drug Delivery Using Biogenic Nanovehicles for Cancer Therapy

RNA-based therapies have been promising method for treating all kinds of diseases, and four siRNA-based drugs and two mRNA-based drugs have been approved and are on the market now. However, none of them is applied for cancer treatment. This is not only because of the complexity of the tumor microenvironment, but also due to the intrinsic obstacles of RNAs. Until now, all kinds of strategies have been developed to improve the performance of RNAs for cancer therapy, especially the nanoparticle-based ones using biogenic materials. They are much more compatible with less toxicity compared to the ones using synthetic polymers, and the most widely studied biogenic materials are oligonucleotides, exosomes, and cell membranes. Particular characteristics make them show different capacities in internalization and endosomal escape as well as specific targeting. In this paper, we systematically summarize the RNA-based nano-delivery systems using biogenic materials for cancer therapy, and we believe this review will provide a valuable reference for researchers involved in the field of biogenic delivery and RNA-based therapies for cancer treatment.