Abstract:
Plants have demonstrated potential in providing various types of phytomedicines with
chemopreventive properties that can combat prostate cancer. However, despite their promising
in vitro activity, the incorporation of these phytochemicals into the market as anticancer agents
has been hindered by their poor bioavailability, mainly due to their inadequate aqueous solubility,
chemical instability, and unsatisfactory circulation time. To overcome these drawbacks, it has been
suggested that the incorporation of phytochemicals as nanoparticles can offer a solution. The use
of plant-based chemicals can also improve the biocompatibility of the formulated nanoparticles
by avoiding the use of certain hazardous chemicals in the synthesis, leading to decreased toxicity
in vivo. Moreover, in some cases, phytochemicals can act as targeting agents to tumour sites. This
review will focus on and summarize the following points: the different types of nanoparticles that
contain individual phytochemicals or plant extracts in their design with the aim of improving the
bioavailability of the phytochemicals; the therapeutic evaluation of these nanoparticles against
prostate cancer both in vitro and in vivo and the reported mode of action and the different types of
anticancer experiments used; how the phytochemicals can also improve the targeting effects of these
nanoparticles in some instances; and the potential toxicity of these nanoparticles.
