Programmable Nanomedicine and Multifunctional Vectors for the Selective Targeting of Hiv-1 Reservoirs: Toward a Next-Generation Shock & Kill Strategy

Abstract

Ndenga Lumbu Barack

The persistence of replication-competent HIV-1 within latent cellular reservoirs constitutes the definitive barrier to a cure. While antiretroviral therapy suppresses active replication, it cannot engage transcriptionally silent proviruses. This review articulates a paradigm shift from systemic pharmacology to precision-targeted intervention, enabled by programmable nanomedicine. We examine the conceptual and material foundations of multifunctional nanovectors engineered to execute the sequential steps of "Shock & Kill"—latency reversal, immune engagement, and targeted cell elimination—within a single, spatiotemporally controlled system. These platforms offer a transformative solution to the core limitations of conventional approaches, promising to translate the Shock & Kill hypothesis from a blunt empiric strategy into an orchestrated therapeutic reality.

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