Biomacromolecular carriers based hydrophobic natural products for potential cancer therapy

Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide. It was estimated that 90 % of cancer-related deaths were attributable to the development of multi-drug resistance (MDR) during chemotherapy, which results in ineffective chemotherapy. Hydrophobic natural products plays a pivotal role in the field of cancer therapy, with the potential to reverse MDR in tumor cells, thereby enhancing the efficacy of tumor therapy. However, their targeted delivery is considered a major hurdle in their application. The advent of numerous approaches for encapsulating bioactive ingredients in the nanodelivery systems has improved the stability and targeted delivery of these biomolecules. The manuscript comprehensively analyses the nanodelivery systems of bioactive compounds with potential cancer therapy applications, including liposomes, emulsions, solid lipid nanoparticles (NPs), and polymeric NPs. Then, the advantages and disadvantages of various nanoagents in the treatment of various cancer types are critically discussed. Further, the application of multiple-compbine delivery methods to overcome the limitations of single-delivery have need critically analyzed, which thus could help in the designing nanodrug delivery systems for bioactive compounds in clinical settings. Therefore, the review is timely and important for development of efficient nanodelivery systems involving hydrophobic natural products to improve pharmacokinetic properties for effective cancer treatment. •Pros and cons of carriers in transporting active substance are critically discussed.•More stratified experiments are needed to predict the future development of carriers.•More refined nanocarriers can improve the overall efficacy of precision therapy.•Combination of various loading modes realize the precision treatment of nanodrug.