Nanotargeting to the kidney

Nanomedicines, nanotechnologies applied to medicine, have been in clinical use for 25 years because of their potential to improve the therapeutic index of drugs. Nanotechnologies can also broaden the classes of therapies that can be administered to patients. They have been used in drug delivery strategies to improve drug bioavailability, solubility, stability, and tolerability, among other benefits. Nanoparticles can also enable the use of nucleic acid therapies and other macromolecular drugs by encapsulating normally delicate cargoes. While the majority of nanoparticles localize drugs predominantly to the liver or spleen, a bevy of recent progress has focused on targeting to the kidneys. This chapter focuses on the advances in drug delivery strategies for the treatment of renal diseases, including methods to improve drug specificity to the nephron. We highlight recent preclinical and clinical developments in nanomedicines and their potential for advancement in nephrology.