Frontiers in the design and synthesis of advanced nanogels for nanomedicine

Abstract

Nanogels have been well recognized as biocompatible nanomaterials for biomedical applications. Although synthesis of nanogels has been well established, challenges still exist for preparation of advanced nanogels with delicate structures and novel properties to fulfil their role in medical applications. Current research focuses on development of nanogels with multiple responsiveness and novel responsive mechanisms for nanogels to interact with biological microenvironments, development of versatile synthetic strategies for the preparation of multifunctional nanogels that can realize the multifold tasks required for nanogels to function as nanomedicine, and promotion of use of mild/biocompatible enzymatic reactions to potentially impart specificity and selectivity in nanogel synthesis. This mini-review highlights most recent work (mostly over the past two years) in the field of nanogels, and defines the frontiers in the design and synthesis of advanced nanogels for nanomedicine.