Neurodegenerativní onemocnění, mezi něž patří např. Alzheimerova a Parkinsonova nemoc, se kvůli své neustále se zvyšující prevalenci a nedostupnosti efektivní léčby staly jedním z nejpalčivějších problémů moderní medicíny. Ačkoli existují látky s potenciálním terapeutickým účinkem, hematoencefalická bariéra vytváří účinnou překážku pro transport léků do centrálního nervového systému. Naději pro vyřešení tohoto problému přinesl nástup nanotechnologií umožňujících přípravu částic s přesně navrženými vlastnostmi pro překročení hematoencefalické bariéry. Širokému využití nanočástic pro transport léků brání nedostatečné zmapování jejich biologických vlastností a bezpečnostních rizik. Pokrok v této oblasti společně s rostoucím porozuměním patogenezi neurodegenerativních onemocnění by v budoucnu mohl vést k nalezení jejich efektivní léčby., Due to the continually rising prevalence and lack of effective therapy, neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, are among the most serious problems of modern medicine. Even though promising compounds with potential therapeutic effect have been developed, blood-brain barrier impedes their transport to the central nervous system. Nanotechnologies produce particles with properties that enable them to cross the blood-brain barrier and thus provide hope in solving this problem. Wide utilization of nanoparticles for transportation of drugs is prevented by our limited knowledge of their biological properties and their safety profile. Further developments in this field together with increasing understanding of the pathogenesis of neurodegeneration may lead to development of effective therapy in the future. Key words: blood-brain barrier – dendrimers – liposomes – nanotubes – carbon – nanoparticles – neurodegenerative diseases The authors declare they have no potential conflicts of interest concerning drugs, products, or services used in the study. The Editorial Board declares that the manuscript met the ICMJE “uniform requirements” for biomedical papers., and M. Filipová, R. Rusina, K. Holada
High grade gliomas are some of the deadliest human tumours. Conventional treatments such as surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy have only a limited effect. Nowadays, resection is the common treatment of choice and although new approaches, such as perioperative magnetic resonance imaging or fluorescent microscopy have been developed, the survival rate of diagnosed patients is still very low. The inefficacy of conventional methods has led to the development of new strategies and the significant progress of nanotechnology in recent years. These platforms can be used either as novel imaging tools or to improve anticancer drug delivery into tumours while minimizing its distribution and toxicity in healthy tissues. Amongst the new nanotechnology platforms used for delivery into the brain tissue are: polymeric nanoparticles, liposomes, dendrimers, nanoshells, carbon nanotubes, superparamagnetic nanoparticles and nucleic acid based nanoparticles (DNA, RNA interference [RNAi] and antisense oligonucleotides [ASO]). These nanoparticles have been applied in the delivery of small molecular weight drugs as well as macromolecules - proteins, peptides and genes. The unique properties of these nanoparticles, such as surface charge, particle size, composition and ability to modify their surface with tissue recognition ligands and antibodies, improve their biodistribution and pharmacokinetics. All of the above mentioned characteristics make of nanoplatforms a very suitable tool for its use in targeted, personalized medicine, where they could possibly carry large doses of therapeutic agents specifically into malignant cells while avoiding healthy cells. This review poses new possibilities in the large field of nanotechnology with special interest in the treatment of high grade brain tumours. and P. Krůpa, S. Řehák, D. Diaz-Garcia, S. Filip