Final answer:
Chemotherapy drugs often use bilayer vesicles, or liposomes, for targeted drug therapies. These liposomes enable the encapsulation and improved delivery of hydrophobic drugs, and they can be engineered to carry both hydrophobic and hydrophilic therapeutics for specific site-directed treatment.
Step-by-step explanation:
Many chemotherapy drugs use bilayer vesicles for targeted drug therapies. These vesicles, commonly known as liposomes, are synthetic structures formed when phospholipids are mixed in water, creating bilayer spheres akin to the cell membrane. Liposomes are utilized due to their ability to encapsulate hydrophobic drugs, improving solubility and reducing local toxicity. Furthermore, they can be engineered for site-specific drug delivery and can carry therapeutics such as proteins or nucleic acids that cannot readily cross cell membranes on their own.
Liposomal formulations have been employed in a variety of innovative therapeutic strategies, including the delivery of contrast agents for MRI imaging, and the co-delivery of siRNA molecules and anticancer drugs like doxorubicin for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer. These novel liposome-based treatments improve the bioavailability of the drugs and reduce the potential for adverse systemic effects.