Novel Applications of Nanotechnology in Controlling HIV and HSV Infections

Global research landscape on nanotechnology in acute lung injury: a bibliometric analysis

Background

Acute lung injury is a common respiratory emergency that seriously affects the life, health and quality of life of patients, especially after the global COVID-19 pneumonia. The application of nanotechnology in acute lung injury is promising. In response to the knowledge explosion resulting from rapid publication growth, we applied bibliometric analysis to explore the research profile and thematic trends in the field.

Methods

Articles and reviews related to nanotechnology in acute lung injury from 2004 to 2023 were searched. Java-based Citespace, VOSviewer, and R software-based Bibiometrix were used to systematically evaluate publications by spatiotemporal distribution, author distribution, subject categories, topic distribution, references, and keywords.

Results

A total of 1,347 publications were included. The number of papers related to nanotechnology in acute lung injury has grown exponentially over the past 20 years. China was the most productive country out of all 53 countries, followed by the United States. The Chinese Academy of Sciences was the most productive institution with 76 papers. PARTICLE AND FIBRE TOXICOLOGY was the most productive journal. The top five high-frequency keywords were inflammation, oxidative stress, toxicity, in vitro, respiratory-distress-syndrome. And the top five emerging keywords were delivery, covid-19, extracellular vesicles, therapy, sars-cov-2. Drug delivery are the focus of current research. Two emerging research areas represented the development trends: novel nanocarriers with higher efficiency and lower biotoxicity, and the other is research related to impact of nanomaterials in the progression of acute lung injury.

Conclusion

The field of nanotechnology in acute lung injury has been in a period of rapid development in the last three years. Delivery,targeted delivery and exosm have been the focus of current research in this field. Two emerging research areas represented the development trends:novel nanocarriers with higher efficiency and lower biotoxicity such as extracellular vesicles, exosomes and solid lipid nanoparticles, and the other is research related to impact of nanomaterials in the progression of acute lung injury.

Navigating Latency-Inducing Viral Infections: Therapeutic Targeting and Nanoparticle Utilization

The investigation into viral latency illuminates its pivotal role in the survival strategies of diverse viruses, including herpesviruses, HIV, and HPV. This underscores the delicate balance between dormancy and the potential for reactivation. The study explores the intricate mechanisms governing viral latency, encompassing episomal and proviral forms, and their integration with the host's genetic material. This integration provides resilience against cellular defenses, substantially impacting the host-pathogen dynamic, especially in the context of HIV, with implications for clinical outcomes. Addressing the challenge of eradicating latent reservoirs, this review underscores the potential of epigenetic and genetic interventions. It highlights the use of innovative nanocarriers like nanoparticles and liposomes for delivering latency-reversing agents. The precision in delivery, capacity to navigate biological barriers, and sustained drug release by these nanocarriers present a promising strategy to enhance therapeutic efficacy. The review further explores nanotechnology's integration in combating latent viral infections, leveraging nanoparticle-based platforms for drug delivery, gene editing, and vaccination. Advances in lipid-based nanocarriers, polymeric nanoparticles, and inorganic nanoparticles are discussed, illustrating their potential for targeted, efficient, and multifunctional antiviral therapy. By merging a deep understanding of viral latency's molecular underpinnings with nanotechnology's transformative capabilities, this review underscores the promise of novel therapeutic interventions. These interventions have great potential for managing persistent viral infections, heralding a new era in the fight against diseases such as neuroHIV/AIDS, herpes, and HPV.

Nanoparticle-Based Therapies for Neurotropic Viral Infections: Mechanisms, Challenges, and Future Prospects

Neurotropic viral infections pose a significant challenge due to their ability to target the central nervous system and cause severe neurological complications. Traditional antiviral therapies face limitations in effectively treating these infections, primarily due to the blood-brain barrier, which restricts the delivery of therapeutic agents to the central nervous system. Nanoparticle-based therapies have emerged as a promising approach to overcome these challenges. Nanoparticles offer unique properties that facilitate drug delivery across biological barriers, such as the blood-brain barrier, and can be engineered to possess antiviral activities.

Nano drug-delivery systems for management of AIDS: liposomes, dendrimers, gold and silver nanoparticles

AIDS causes increasing mortality every year. With advancements in nanomedicine, different nanomaterials (NMs) have been applied to treat AIDS and overcome its limitations. Among different NMs, nanoparticles (NPs) can act as nanocarriers due to their enhanced solubility, sustained release, targeting abilities and facilitation of drug-dose reductions. This review discusses recent advancements in therapeutics for AIDS/HIV using various NMs, mainly focused on three classifications: polymeric, liposomal and inorganic NMs. Polymeric dendrimers, polyethylenimine-NPs, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)-NPs, chitosan and the use of liposomal-based delivery systems and inorganic NPs, including gold and silver NPs, are explored. Recent advances, current challenges and future perspectives on the use of these NMs for better management of HIV/AIDS are also discussed.

Fascinating Molecular and Immune Escape Mechanisms in the Treatment of STIs (Syphilis, Gonorrhea, Chlamydia, and Herpes Simplex)

The incidence of syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and herpes simplex has increased over the last decade, despite the numerous prevention strategies. Worldwide scientists report a surge in drug-resistant infections, particularly in immunocompromised patients. Antigenic variations in syphilis enable long-term infection, but benzathine penicillin G maintains its efficiency, whereas macrolides should be recommended with caution. Mupirocin and zoliflodacin were recently introduced as therapies against ceftriaxone-resistant gonococcus, which poses a larger global threat. The gastrointestinal and prostatic potential reservoirs of Chlamydia trachomatis may represent the key towards complete eradication. Similar to syphilis, macrolides resistance has to be considered in genital chlamydiosis. Acyclovir-resistant HSV may respond to the novel helicase-primase inhibitors and topical imiquimod, particularly in HIV-positive patients. Novel drugs can overcome these challenges while nanocarriers enhance their potency, particularly in mucosal areas. This review summarizes the most recent and valuable discoveries regarding the immunopathogenic mechanisms of these sexually transmitted infections and discusses the challenges and opportunities of the novel molecules and nanomaterials.

Nanoparticle-based strategies to target HIV-infected cells

Antiretroviral drugs employed for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections have remained largely ineffective due to their poor bioavailability, numerous adverse effects, modest uptake in infected cells, undesirable drug-drug interactions, the necessity for long-term drug therapy, and lack of access to tissues and reservoirs. Nanotechnology-based interventions could serve to overcome several of these disadvantages and thereby improve the therapeutic efficacy of antiretrovirals while reducing the morbidity and mortality due to the disease. However, attempts to use nanocarriers for the delivery of anti-retroviral drugs have started gaining momentum only in the past decade. This review explores in-depth the various nanocarriers that have been employed for the treatment of HIV infections highlighting their merits and possible demerits.

Recent advances in nanotechnology-based COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutic antibodies

COVID-19 has caused a global pandemic and millions of deaths. It is imperative to develop effective countermeasures against the causative viral agent, SARS-CoV-2 and its many variants. Vaccines and therapeutic antibodies are the most effective approaches for preventing and treating COVID-19, respectively. SARS-CoV-2 enters host cells through the activities of the virus-surface spike (S) protein. Accordingly, the S protein is a prime target for vaccines and therapeutic antibodies. Dealing with particles with dimensions on the scale of nanometers, nanotechnology has emerged as a critical tool for rapidly designing and developing safe, effective, and urgently needed vaccines and therapeutics to control the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, nanotechnology was key to the fast-track approval of two mRNA vaccines for their wide use in human populations. In this review article, we first explore the roles of nanotechnology in battling COVID-19, including protein nanoparticles (for presentation of protein vaccines), lipid nanoparticles (for formulation with mRNAs), and nanobodies (as unique therapeutic antibodies). We then summarize the currently available COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics based on nanotechnology.