Reconstituted high-density lipoproteins: novel biomimetic nanocarriers for drug delivery

High-density lipoproteins (HDL) are naturally-occurring nanoparticles that are biocompatible, non-immunogenic and completely biodegradable. These endogenous particles can circulate for an extended period of time and transport lipids, proteins and microRNA from donor cells to recipient cells. Based on their intrinsic targeting properties, HDL are regarded as promising drug delivery systems. In order to produce on a large scale and to avoid blood borne pollution, reconstituted high-density lipoproteins (rHDL) possessing the biological properties of HDL have been developed. This review summarizes the biological properties and biomedical applications of rHDL as drug delivery platforms. It focuses on the emerging approaches that have been developed for the generation of biomimetic nanoparticles rHDL to overcome the biological barriers to drug delivery, aiming to provide an alternative, promising avenue for efficient targeting transport of nanomedicine.