Mucilage-based nanocarriers for targeted cancer therapy—design, functionalization, and therapeutic potential

OBJECTIVE: To provide a comprehensive evaluation of mucilage-based nanocarriers as emerging platforms for targeted cancer therapy, focusing on their design, functionalization, and therapeutic potential. SIGNIFICANCE: Mucilage, a plant-derived biopolymer composed of natural polysaccharides, possesses inherent biocompatibility, biodegradability, and unique physicochemical characteristics such as high-water retention, gel-forming ability, and stimuli-responsiveness. These properties position mucilage as an ideal material for controlled drug delivery in oncology, offering potential improvements over conventional nanocarriers. However, despite these advantages, the application of mucilage in nanocarrier design remains underexplored, with limited consolidation of existing knowledge and comparative performance data-representing a significant research gap in the field of natural polymer-based drug delivery systems. METHODS: This review synthesizes current advances in the fabrication and functionalization of mucilage-based nanocarriers using techniques such as emulsion solvent evaporation, nanoprecipitation, and green synthesis. It also examines surface modifications, including ligand conjugation and pH-sensitive linker integration, aimed at enhancing tumor-targeted delivery and intracellular drug release. RESULTS: Preclinical studies demonstrate that mucilage-based nanocarriers enable efficient encapsulation of hydrophobic drugs, improve solubility and pharmacokinetic profiles, and promote targeted drug accumulation at tumor sites. These systems show prolonged circulation times and reduced systemic toxicity compared to traditional nanocarriers. CONCLUSIONS: This review highlights the novelty of mucilage-based systems as a sustainable and multifunctional nanoplatform for cancer therapy. While demonstrating clear therapeutic potential, these systems face challenges including variability in mucilage composition, scalability of production, long-term stability, and regulatory standardization. Future efforts should focus on developing standardized extraction methods, predictive design models, and fostering multidisciplinary collaborations to fully realize the clinical potential of these systems in precision oncology.