Metal-Organic Frameworks as Drug Delivery Systems for Tumor Targeted Treatment

Abstract

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a class of porous crystalline materials composed of metal nodes and organic linkers, which have attracted great attention for various applications, especially in biomedicine. Tumor treatment often requires repeated, massive, prolonged drug therapy. Traditional drugs and their delivery systems are prone to the development of drug resistance and even concurrent cancers. So it is urgent to develop a new DDS. MOFs have shown promising potential in the DDS for tumor-targeted treatment, because of their large surface area, large pore volume, modifiable structure as well as functionality, and versatile drug loading and release mechanisms. In this review, the recent advances, and challenges of MOFs as DDS for tumor targeting treatment are summarized, focusing on the synthetic methods of promising MOFs, and the targeting strategies. Several recent studies of drug-loaded MOF NPs for the treatment are illustrated. Besides, the functionality proved for biocompatibility, biodegradability, and stability in vivo, the challenges and perspectives for future research and development were discussed. It is hoped that this paper can offer an overview and insights for researchers who are interested in MOFs as DDS for tumor targeting treatment.