Definition and research guide
This page combines a MeSH definition, publication statistics and selected research abstracts. It is a starting point for reading the literature, not a medical textbook or a systematic evidence review.
Content available: 4 complete abstracts (694 words), 10 references. Full article text is not stored or reproduced here; follow the PMID, DOI or PMC links to read the original sources and their access terms.
Definition
Nanometer-sized, hollow, spherically-shaped objects that can be utilized to encapsulate small amounts of pharmaceuticals, enzymes, or other catalysts (Glossary of Biotechnology and Nanobiotechnology, 4th ed).
Definition: NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) scope note (Public domain (U.S. National Library of Medicine); attribution requested). View the MeSH record.
Also known as: Nanocapsule.
Where it fits in the MeSH classification
- Broader topics
- Drug Carriers; Nanoparticles
Research landscape
PubMed indexes 4,583 records tagged with the MeSH heading “Nanocapsules” (counts retrieved 2026-10-29). 1,047 of them (22.8%) were published from 2020 onward, and the busiest period so far is 2010-2019 with 3,324 records.
Reviews account for 378 records (8.2%) and meta-analyses for 2. Randomized controlled trials number 11 (0.2%) as a share of all records on the topic. Randomized trials make up only a small share of this literature, so much of what is known comes from laboratory, observational or descriptive work.
Show the data
| Period | Records |
|---|---|
| through 1999 | 0 |
| 2000-2009 | 273 |
| 2010-2019 | 3,324 |
| 2020 onward | 1,047 |
Publication-type chart data
| Type | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 378 | 8.2% |
| Meta-analyses | 2 | 0.0% |
| Randomized controlled trials | 11 | 0.2% |
Method: PubMed query "Nanocapsules"[MeSH Terms] with publication-type and date filters, retrieved 2026-10-29.
Reading the evidence in pharmacology
Drug evidence builds in layers: laboratory pharmacology describes how a compound acts, pharmacokinetic studies describe how the body handles it, and randomized trials test whether it helps and what harms it causes. Post-marketing surveillance and observational studies reveal rarer adverse effects but cannot prove causation. This page is educational and is not a recommendation to start, stop or change any medicine; decisions about treatment belong with a qualified clinician.
Evidence from open-access studies
These open-access studies come from PubMed’s best-match results for this heading (papers whose main topic it is), ranked here by citation count, with one recent addition. Each abstract is reproduced in full under its recorded open licence so that you can read the authors’ own words. They illustrate the literature; they are not a systematic summary of it. Citation counts measure attention, not reliability or clinical benefit.
| Study / authors | Year | Source label / design | Europe PMC citations | Licence / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light-driven liquid metal nanotransformers for biomedical theranostics | 2017 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 219 | cc by PMID 28561016 · DOI · PMC5460022 |
| Multivariate Modulation of the Zr MOF UiO-66 for Defect-Controlled Combination Anticancer Drug Delivery | 2020 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 155 | cc by PMID 31950568 · DOI · PMC7154787 |
| Near-infrared light and tumor microenvironment dual responsive size-switchable nanocapsules for multimodal tumor theranostics | 2019 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 137 | cc by PMID 31562357 · DOI · PMC6765052 |
| Delivery of monoclonal antibodies to the brain: the impact of nanocarrier structure | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 2 | cc by PMID 40892320 · DOI · PMC12876119 |
Light-driven liquid metal nanotransformers for biomedical theranostics [1]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Room temperature liquid metals (LMs) represent a class of emerging multifunctional materials with attractive novel properties.
- Closing excerpt
- In addition, LMs display a photoacoustic effect in living animals during NIR laser treatment, making this system a powerful tool for bioimaging.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (141 words)
Room temperature liquid metals (LMs) represent a class of emerging multifunctional materials with attractive novel properties. Here, we show that photopolymerized LMs present a unique nanoscale capsule structure characterized by high water dispersibility and low toxicity. We also demonstrate that the LM nanocapsule generates heat and reactive oxygen species under biologically neutral near-infrared (NIR) laser irradiation. Concomitantly, NIR laser exposure induces a transformation in LM shape, destruction of the nanocapsules, contactless controlled release of the loaded drugs, optical manipulations of a microfluidic blood vessel model and spatiotemporal targeted marking for X-ray-enhanced imaging in biological organs and a living mouse. By exploiting the physicochemical properties of LMs, we achieve effective cancer cell elimination and control of intercellular calcium ion flux. In addition, LMs display a photoacoustic effect in living animals during NIR laser treatment, making this system a powerful tool for bioimaging.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 28561016 · DOI · PMC5460022
Multivariate Modulation of the Zr MOF UiO-66 for Defect-Controlled Combination Anticancer Drug Delivery [2]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are emerging as leading candidates for nanoscale drug delivery, as a consequence of their high drug capacities, ease of functionality, and the ability to carefully engineer key physical properties.
- Closing excerpt
- We believe that multivariate modulation is a significant advance in the application of MOFs in biomedicine, and anticipate the protocol will also be adopted in other areas of MOF chemistry, to easily produce defective MOFs with arrays of highly functionalised pores for potential application in gas separations and catalysis.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (206 words)
Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are emerging as leading candidates for nanoscale drug delivery, as a consequence of their high drug capacities, ease of functionality, and the ability to carefully engineer key physical properties. Despite many anticancer treatment regimens consisting of a cocktail of different drugs, examples of delivery of multiple drugs from one MOF are rare, potentially hampered by difficulties in postsynthetic loading of more than one cargo molecule. Herein, we report a new strategy, multivariate modulation, which allows incorporation of up to three drugs in the Zr MOF UiO-66 by defect-loading. The drugs are added to one-pot solvothermal synthesis and are distributed throughout the MOF at defect sites by coordination to the metal clusters. This tight binding comes with retention of crystallinity and porosity, allowing a fourth drug to be postsynthetically loaded into the MOFs to yield nanoparticles loaded with cocktails of drugs that show enhancements in selective anticancer cytotoxicity against MCF-7 breast cancer cells in vitro. We believe that multivariate modulation is a significant advance in the application of MOFs in biomedicine, and anticipate the protocol will also be adopted in other areas of MOF chemistry, to easily produce defective MOFs with arrays of highly functionalised pores for potential application in gas separations and catalysis.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 31950568 · DOI · PMC7154787
Near-infrared light and tumor microenvironment dual responsive size-switchable nanocapsules for multimodal tumor theranostics [3]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Smart drug delivery systems (SDDSs) for cancer treatment are of considerable interest in the field of theranostics.
- Closing excerpt
- Our synthetic strategy provides a platform for next generation smart nanocapsules with enhanced permeability and retention effect, multimodal anticancer theranostics, and biodegradability.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (147 words)
Smart drug delivery systems (SDDSs) for cancer treatment are of considerable interest in the field of theranostics. However, developing SDDSs with early diagnostic capability, enhanced drug delivery and efficient biodegradability still remains a scientific challenge. Herein, we report near-infrared light and tumor microenvironment (TME), dual responsive as well as size-switchable nanocapsules. These nanocapsules are made of a PLGA-polymer matrix coated with Fe/FeO core-shell nanocrystals and co-loaded with chemotherapy drug and photothermal agent. Smartly engineered nanocapsules can not only shrink and decompose into small-sized nanodrugs upon drug release but also can regulate the TME to overproduce reactive oxygen species for enhanced synergistic therapy in tumors. In vivo experiments demonstrate that these nanocapsules can target to tumor sites through fluorescence/magnetic resonance imaging and offer remarkable therapeutic results. Our synthetic strategy provides a platform for next generation smart nanocapsules with enhanced permeability and retention effect, multimodal anticancer theranostics, and biodegradability.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 31562357 · DOI · PMC6765052
Delivery of monoclonal antibodies to the brain: the impact of nanocarrier structure [4]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are promising therapeutic agents for neurological disorders due to their high specificity.
- Closing excerpt
- These findings provide key insights into optimizing nanocarrier design for improved mAb delivery to the brain.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (200 words)
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are promising therapeutic agents for neurological disorders due to their high specificity. However, their clinical application is significantly hindered by their poor transport across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and their limited diffusion within the brain parenchyma. While significant efforts have been oriented to tackle the first barrier, the challenge of efficient brain diffusion remains largely underexplored. To address this, we have developed and evaluated two structurally distinct nanosystems for mAb delivery to the brain: PEGylated polyglutamic acid nanocapsules (PGA-PEG NCs) and PGAC14-based nanoassemblies (PGAC14 NAs). Both formulations encapsulated efficiently the model mAb bevacizumab (BVZ) while they exhibited different physicochemical properties. Namely, PGA-PEG NCs displayed a size of 80 nm and a neutral zeta potential, whereas PGAC14 NAs featured an ultra-small size of 40 nm and a negative surface charge. After assessing their diffusion capacity using immunofluorescence, we concluded that PGAC14 NAs exhibited the highest brain diffusion together with a favorable neuroinflammatory profile. This was likely driven by their small size and negative charge, along with a selective ability to interact with and deliver BVZ intracellularly to neuronal cells upon intraparenchymal administration. These findings provide key insights into optimizing nanocarrier design for improved mAb delivery to the brain.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 40892320 · DOI · PMC12876119
Key reviews and meta-analyses
The most cited review-type papers among PubMed’s best-match results for this heading, listed with bibliographic details only. Follow the links for the full text and access terms.
- Research article The role of surface charge in cellular uptake and cytotoxicity of medical nanoparticles [5]
- Research article Overcoming cellular barriers for RNA therapeutics [6]
- Research article Polymer-based nanocapsules for drug delivery [7]
- Research article Pharmacological potential of cerium oxide nanoparticles [8]
- Research article Gold nanocages: from synthesis to theranostic applications [9]
- Research article Lipid-based nanoparticles for nucleic acid delivery [10]
References
- Chechetka SA, Yu Y, Zhen X, Pramanik M, Pu K, Miyako E. Light-driven liquid metal nanotransformers for biomedical theranostics. . 2017. PMID 28561016 · DOI · PMC5460022
- Abánades Lázaro I, Wells CJR, Forgan RS. Multivariate Modulation of the Zr MOF UiO-66 for Defect-Controlled Combination Anticancer Drug Delivery. . 2020. PMID 31950568 · DOI · PMC7154787
- Wang Z, Ju Y, Ali Z, Yin H, Sheng F, Lin J, et al.. Near-infrared light and tumor microenvironment dual responsive size-switchable nanocapsules for multimodal tumor theranostics. . 2019. PMID 31562357 · DOI · PMC6765052
- Pineiro-Alonso L, Rubio-Prego I, López-Estévez AM, Garrido-Gil P, Valenzuela R, Labandeira-García JL, et al.. Delivery of monoclonal antibodies to the brain: the impact of nanocarrier structure. . 2026. PMID 40892320 · DOI · PMC12876119
- Fröhlich E. The role of surface charge in cellular uptake and cytotoxicity of medical nanoparticles. Int J Nanomedicine. 2012. PMID 23144561 · DOI · PMC3493258
- Dowdy SF. Overcoming cellular barriers for RNA therapeutics. Nat Biotechnol. 2017. PMID 28244992 · DOI
- Mora-Huertas CE, Fessi H, Elaissari A. Polymer-based nanocapsules for drug delivery. Int J Pharm. 2010. PMID 19825408 · DOI
- Celardo I, Pedersen JZ, Traversa E, Ghibelli L. Pharmacological potential of cerium oxide nanoparticles. Nanoscale. 2011. PMID 21369578 · DOI
- Xia Y, Li W, Cobley CM, Chen J, Xia X, Zhang Q, et al.. Gold nanocages: from synthesis to theranostic applications. Acc Chem Res. 2011. PMID 21528889 · DOI · PMC3168958
- Li W, Szoka FC. Lipid-based nanoparticles for nucleic acid delivery. Pharm Res. 2007. PMID 17252188 · DOI
About this article
- Sources
- NLM Medical Subject Headings (definition, synonyms); NCBI PubMed (counts, identifiers); Europe PMC (open-access abstracts and citation counts).
- Verification
- Every reference was resolved against PubMed on 2026-10-31; title, year and DOI matched.
- Review state
- automated source verified; no human expert review has been recorded yet.
- Version
- 1, last updated 2026-10-29.
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Evidence strength
EvidenceHelix's computed view of the study designs behind this topic: how common meta-analyses, randomized trials and reviews are, how recent the literature is, and a plain-language reading. It describes the design mix of the literature. It is not a quality appraisal of any study, and it is not medical advice.