Engineered nanoparticles mimicking cell membranes for toxin neutralization

• Published in: Advanced drug delivery reviews Vol. 90; pp. 69 - 80
• Main Authors: Fang, Ronnie H., Luk, Brian T., Hu, Che-Ming J., Zhang, Liangfang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01-08-2015
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-toxin nanoparticles; Antitoxins - therapeutic use; Cell Membrane - metabolism; Cell membranes; Detoxification; Humans; Liposomes; Nanoparticles - therapeutic use; Nanosponges; Poisoning - drug therapy; Toxins, Biological - toxicity; Toxoids - therapeutic use; Vaccines - therapeutic use; Virulence; Virulence factors; Anti-toxin nanoparticles; Nanosponges; Cell membranes; Liposomes; Virulence factors; Detoxification
• ISSN: 0169-409X; 1872-8294
• DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2015.04.001

Protein toxins secreted from pathogenic bacteria and venomous animals rely on multiple mechanisms to overcome the cell membrane barrier to inflict their virulence effect. A promising therapeutic concept toward developing a broadly applicable anti-toxin platform is to administer cell membrane mimics as decoys to sequester these virulence factors. As such, lipid membrane-based nanoparticulates are an ideal candidate given their structural similarity to cellular membranes. This article reviews the virulence mechanisms employed by toxins at the cell membrane interface and highlights the application of cell-membrane mimicking nanoparticles as toxin decoys for systemic detoxification. In addition, the implication of particle/toxin nanocomplexes in the development of toxoid vaccines is discussed.
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