Dendrimers in Nanomedicine

Nanomedicine can take advantage of the recent developments in nanobiotechnology research for the creation of platforms with superior drug carrier capabilities, selective responsiveness to the environment, unique contrast enhancement profiles, and improved accumulation at the disease site. This book provides a broad glimpse of how various dendritic nanomaterials have been designed and used as efficient tools for nanomedicine. It comprises a pedagogic introduction to dendrimers and hyperbranched systems and their classical and accelerated syntheses through cutting-edge methodologies. The chapters on dendronized magnetic nanoparticles as theranostics, dendrimers in theory (molecular simulations), siRNA delivery with dendrimers, and dendrimers for image-guided therapy, combined with chapters focused on specific types of dendrimers or hyperbranched structures, detail the cutting-edge research in nanomedicine. Finally, a detailed chapter on issues related to the pharmacokinetics and biodistribution of dendrimers helps choose the right structures for successful transfer from bench to bedside. This book will appeal to those involved in nanobiotechnology, macromolecular science, cancer therapy, tissue repair, and siRNA delivery research.

Table of Contents:
General introduction: classical versus accelerated syntheses of dendrimers. Dendrimer-nanoparticle conjugates. Dendritic polymers for the repair of tissues. Polyglycerols in Nanomedicine. Theranostic dendronized iron oxide nanoparticles. Anti-inflammatory dendrimers. Dendrimers for siRNA delivery. Dendrimers in cancer therapy. Dendrimer pharmacokinetics and biodistribution. Molecular modeling of dendrimers.

About the Author :
Delphine Felder-Flesch obtained her PhD in supramolecular organic chemistry from the University of Strasbourg, France, in 2001. After an Erasmus training period at the University of York, England, she started post-doctoral research at the ETH-Zürich, Switzerland, in the group of Prof. Dr. F. Diederich. Since October 2003, she is a CNRS research scientist at the Institute of Physics and Chemistry of Materials Strasbourg, France. Her main research interests include (ME)MRI or nuclear medicine dendritic nanoprobes for efficient in vivo tumor targeting and cancer early diagnosis imaging. She also develops, in collaboration with solid state chemists, dendronized nanoparticles as MRI nanoprobes and for magnetic hyperthermia treatment of cancers.

Review :
"Dendrimers in Nanomedicine is a timely, well-edited as well as masterly crafted book written by experts in the field. Although dendrimers were originally proposed to be a cure-all for medicine, it has taken longer than expected to fully appreciate their inherent structural shortcomings as well as potential. With new, novel architectural designs and their availability for critical in-depth in vitro and in vivo testing, the innovative roles of dendrimers in nanomedicine are explored. This book describes the impact of the first three decades of tunable dendritic architectures designed and constructed for nanomedicine, and their future is inspirational. It is a must-read for anyone in the supramolecular polymer/medical arena." —Prof. George R. Newkome, University of Akron, USA "Since the first report by Donald Tomalia in 1991, R&D on dendrimers has made exponential progress as a mainstay of nanomedicine. Now close to 7000 articles have been published on dendrimer research. This book covers the research and applications of various dendrimers very well—from their chemistry to their practical medical applications. Therefore, it will be a very good reference for graduate students and expert researchers in the field." —Dr. Hisataka Kobayashi, National Cancer Institute, USA "Dendrimers in Nanomedicine is a timely, well-edited as well as masterly crafted book written by experts in the field. Although dendrimers were originally proposed to be a cure-all for medicine, it has taken longer than expected to fully appreciate their inherent structural shortcomings as well as potential. With new, novel architectural designs and their availability for critical in-depth in vitro and in vivo testing, the innovative roles of dendrimers in nanomedicine are explored. This book describes the impact of the first three decades of tunable dendritic architectures designed and constructed for nanomedicine, and their future is inspirational. It is a must-read for anyone in the supramolecular polymer/medical arena." —Prof. George R. Newkome, University of Akron, USA "Since the first report by Donald Tomalia in 1991, R&D on dendrimers has made exponential progress as a mainstay of nanomedicine. Now close to 7000 articles have been published on dendrimer research. This book covers the research and applications of various dendrimers very well—from their chemistry to their practical medical applications. Therefore, it will be a very good reference for graduate students and expert researchers in the field." —Dr. Hisataka Kobayashi, National Cancer Institute, USA