Mimicking nature's nanocarrier: Synthetic low-density lipoprotein-like nanoparticles for cancer-drug delivery

Low-density lipoproteins have long been recognized as a viable nanocarrier for targeted delivery of drug and imaging agents. Many groups have published promising initial findings; however, progress in this field has been impeded by the need to isolate low-density lipoproteins from fresh donor plasma. In a recent paper by Nikanjam and colleagues, synthetic low-density lipoprotein-like nanoparticles were prepared from commercial lipids and a bifunctional synthetic peptide containing the low-density lipoprotein receptor-binding domain and the lipid-binding motif. These particles were shown to behave similarly to native low-density lipoproteins and also to bind to the low-density lipoprotein receptor on cancer cells. Herein, we evaluate the utility of this novel delivery vehicle and discuss what role this technology may have in nanomedicine.