Drug Delivery Agents: Necessary Modifications and Condition in Nano Materials

Over the past few decades, nanomaterials have emerged as highly promising platforms for advanced drug delivery. A wide range of nanocarriers, including metallic nanoparticles, polymers, dendrimers, liposomes, carbon nanotubes, graphene-based materials, nanogels, and lipid-based nanoparticles, have demonstrated remarkable success in delivering therapeutic agents. These systems enable controlled, targeted, and efficient transport of drugs to affected sites, thereby enhancing therapeutic efficacy. Key attributes such as biocompatibility, structural stability, drug-loading capacity, site-specific targeting, controlled release behavior, and reduced systemic toxicity can be further optimized through appropriate surface modifications and careful control of critical physicochemical conditions. This chapter presents a comprehensive overview of recent modifications and critical conditions required to enhance the efficiency and therapeutic potential of nanomaterials as drug delivery agents. It emphasizes the fundamental engineered parameters of nanomaterial-based delivery systems, including particle size, morphology, stability, bio-distribution, cellular uptake, drug-loading capacity, and release behavior. The chapter further discusses diverse surface functionalization strategies that play a pivotal role in improving targeting specificity and enabling rational design of nanocarriers. In addition, physiological stimuli such as temperature and pH responsiveness are examined to understand their influence on nanomaterial stability and drug release kinetics. A concise overview of hybrid and multifunctional nanomaterials is also provided, highlighting their role in developing selective, responsive, and customized drug delivery systems with improved clinical translation.