Nanoparticles in Antiviral Therapy

In addition to general unavailability of specific antiviral therapeutics for a variety of viral diseases, usage of most antiviral drugs is linked to their limited solubility in aqueous media, short half-life time, and inadequate penetration to specified anatomic compartments. Accordingly, there is continuous effort to improve physicochemical characteristics of existing antiviral drugs. Since nanomaterials display remarkable physical and chemical properties, high surface area to volume ratio, and increased reactivity, new approaches for antiviral therapies include combinations of nanomaterials and current antiviral agents. Multivalent nanostructures, polymers, dendrimers, and liposomes can establish multivalent binding interactions with many biological systems and thus can target pathogenic interactions. There are reports about anitiviral activities of different metal nanoparticles, especially silver nanoparticles and their potential for treatment, prophylaxis, and control of viral infections. Integration of classic antiviral drugs, in the form of multiple ligands, onto nanostructures provides the advantages by creating a high local concentration of active molecules. This article will summarize the antiviral activity of different nanoparticle-based approaches currently available for the treatment of viral infections, and it will discuss metal nanoparticles as possible future antiviral drugs.