Neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, and brain cancers are difficult to treat with current drugs as their delivery efficacy to the brain is severely hampered by the presence of the blood–brain barrier (BBB). Drug delivery systems have been extensively explored in recent decades aiming to circumvent this barrier. In particular, polymeric nanoparticles have shown enormous potentials owing to their unique properties, such as high tunability, ease of synthesis, and control over drug release profile. However, careful analysis of their performance in effective drug transport across the BBB should be performed using clinically relevant testing models. In this review, polymeric nanoparticle systems for drug delivery to the central nervous system are discussed with an emphasis on the effects of particle size, shape, and surface modifications on BBB penetration. Moreover, the authors critically analyze the current in vitro and in vivo models used to evaluate BBB penetration efficacy, including the latest developments in the BBB‐on‐a‐chip models. Finally, the challenges and future perspectives for the development of polymeric nanoparticles to combat neurological disorders are discussed.

In this paper, we describe the synthesis of asymmetric functional POEGMA-b-P(ST-co-VBA) copolymers in methanol, yielding in one-pot polymerization a range of nanoparticle morphologies, including spherical micelles, worm-like, rod-like micelles and vesicles. The presence of the aldehyde group was then exploited to form crosslinks or to conjugate chemotherapy compounds, such as doxorubicin, via pH-breakable bonds (Schiff base or imine) directly to the preformed nanoparticles. The influence of the nanoparticle morphologies on the MCF-7 breast cancer cell line uptake was investigated using flow cytometry and confocal microscopy. Finally, the IC₅₀ of DOX, following nanoparticle delivery, was studied showing significant influence of the nanoparticle carrier morphology on therapeutic efficacy for breast cancer.

Multivalent glycopolymers exhibit a strong affinity for specific lectin proteins depending on their specific carbohydrate functionality. In this work, we report a facile one-pot synthesis of diblock PEG-glycopolymers using a combination of Cu(0) mediated living radical polymerization and click chemistry to attach three different carbohydrates, α-D-mannose, α-D-glucose and β-D-glucose, to iron oxide nanoparticle (IONP) surfaces. The resultant IONP@P(OEGA)-b-P(sugar) nanoparticles were then extensively characterized using a wide range of analytical techniques, including ATR-FTIR, XPS and TEM. Interestingly, α-D-mannose functionalized IONPs, (IONP@P(OEGA)-b-P(N3Man)), exhibited high r₂ transverse relaxivity when measured in a 9.4 T MRI. A significant change in T₂ relaxation was observed following binding to the lectin concanavalin A (Con A), with a response proportional to the lectin concentration. The results reported herein indicate that the specific binding of lectin to nanoparticle surfaces can be quantitatively detected using MRI, showing significant promise for future diagnostic applications. Additionally we found a significant improvement in cell uptake for IONPs functionalized with α-D-mannose, in a lung cancer cell line (A549).