Artificial intelligence in nanomedicine

Abstract

The field of nanomedicine has made substantial strides in the areas of therapeutic and diagnostic development. For example, nanoparticle-modified drug compounds and imaging agents have resulted in markedly enhanced treatment outcomes and contrast efficiency. In recent years, investigational nanomedicine platforms have also been taken into the clinic, with regulatory approval for Abraxane® and other products being awarded. As the nanomedicine field has continued to evolve, multifunctional approaches have been explored to simultaneously integrate therapeutic and diagnostic agents onto a single particle, or deliver multiple nanomedicine-functionalized therapies in unison. Similar to the objectives of conventional combination therapy, these strategies may further improve treatment outcomes through targeted, multi-agent delivery that preserves drug synergy. Also, similar to conventional/unmodified combination therapy, nanomedicine-based drug delivery is often explored at fixed doses. A persistent challenge in all forms of drug administration is that drug synergy is time-dependent, dose-dependent and patient-specific at any given point of treatment. To overcome this challenge, the evolution towards nanomedicine-mediated co-delivery of multiple therapies has made the potential of interfacing artificial intelligence (AI) with nanomedicine to sustain optimization in combinatorial nanotherapy a reality. Specifically, optimizing drug and dose parameters in combinatorial nanomedicine administration is a specific area where AI can actionably realize the full potential of nanomedicine. To this end, this review will examine the role that AI can have in substantially improving nanomedicine-based treatment outcomes, particularly in the context of combination nanotherapy for both N-of-1 and population-optimized treatment.