Antibody-based neuronal and axonal delivery vectors for targeted ligand delivery

Targeted ligand delivery (TLD) or selective delivery of cargo to peripheral axonal and neuronal compartments is a useful strategy for several unmet clinical and preclinical needs relevant to the health and diseases of peripheral nervous system (PNS). Potentially, PNS organization and architecture can be exploited to achieve TLD. As a tissue peripheral nerves are widely distributed and interact directly with almost all other tissues of the mammalian body. Peripheral neurons are highly polarized cells with long axonal processes and structural specializations along their length and termini. The neuronal projections are organized into discrete bundles of peripheral nerves that hugely vary in their size and fiber type constitution (sensory, motor, and autonomic) and wire the entire body along different planes and depths along their paths. The polarized nature of peripheral neuronal and axonal compartments provide an opportunity to access these compartments at the axonal termini of peripheral neurons, which are typically not segregated by blood-tissue (neural) barriers and relatively accessible to circulating materials. Materials entering axonal termini can be distributed throughout the respective axonal and neuronal compartment by retrograde transport systems that are integral to neurons.