By 
Liposome development may just be one of the most important in drug delivery systems on the market. It can make treatments more effective and it can reduce toxicity found in some medicines. Doxorubicin-loaded liposome development had started it all and was mostly well received from medical experts and patients alike. Since it had a decent amount of success, other liposome treatments had spawned from it and are making way for new treatments for cancer, HIV, and other serious diseases. There are also some clinical trials to include liposome treatments in order to enhance vaccinations.
Anti-Cancer Drugs
Liposomal formations have been known within medical literature since 1965 and there are now decades of research behind it. Since the first approval of a liposomal-based product had happened, a large number of cancer-fighting drugs had stemmed from it. Most of the chemotherapy drugs that we now use today are thanks to liposome development. Chemotherapy is now more effective in delivering treatment while being less toxic at the same time.
The latest in liposome development has lead to many different drugs that treat cancer. There are some DOPC, cholesterol, and cardiolipin lipid drugs that are used to fight ovarian, breast, and lung cancers. There are also some DOTAP-based liposome drugs to treat pancreatic cancer drugs. For mesothelioma, there are medications comprised of SPC, DPPG, cholesterol, and DSPE-mPEG that can be applied to fight it. These cancer treatments are mostly applied intravenously but there are some that may be applied via subcutaneous injections.
How Can A Liposome-Based Medication Fight Cancer?
There may be different mechanisms for anti-cancer liposome drugs depending on the brand. For example, anthracyclines are a class of broad-spectrum cancer treatment drugs that can be used in a variety of cancers. One of the primary ways this type of drug fights cancer is by inhibiting RNA and DNA production that would otherwise assist in rapidly growing cancer cells. It can also block a mechanism called topoisomerase II, which is also responsible for DNA replication of the cancer cells. There are always side effects with these treatments, including nausea and vomiting and certain toxicities.
Cancer Vaccines
Cancer vaccinations using liposome research has been in the works for a while and may prove to have promising results. In the instances of clinical trials of liposomes being used with vaccines, DOPC, DOPE or DPPC seem to be the preferred lipids. Non-small-cell carcinoma has been treated in clinical trials using BLP25 lipopeptide to target MUC1 antigens. Similarly, liposome delivery systems have also been proven to increase the efficiency of influenza vaccines. Although liposome-based treatments do not directly treat cancers or diseases, it can increase the effectiveness of drugs while mitigating toxic side effects.
Comments