1. Introduction
Nanoscience and nanotechnology have emerged as transformative fields with promising applications in biotechnology, biomedicine, and veterinary medicine. While nanotechnology has been extensively studied and applied in human medicine, its utilization in veterinary medicine remains comparatively nascent but rapidly developing. Veterinary nanomedicine holds great potential to revolutionize animal health management, disease diagnosis, drug delivery, and productivity improvement in livestock and domestic animals. Nanoparticles (NPs), typically sized within 1–100 nanometers, serve as multifunctional platforms that enhance therapeutic outcomes due to their unique physicochemical and biological properties. This review summarizes the current advances in the application of various nanoparticles in veterinary medicine, emphasizing their antimicrobial, diagnostic, therapeutic, and production-enhancing roles. Challenges and future perspectives in veterinary nanotechnology are also discussed.
2. Types of Nanoparticles Applied in Veterinary Medicine
Diverse nanoscaled structures have been developed for veterinary applications, including liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles, dendrimers, micellar nanoparticles, metallic nanoparticles, and carbon-based nanomaterials.
2.1 Liposomes
Liposomes are spherical vesicles composed of lipid bilayers that encapsulate aqueous interiors, capable of carrying hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs with biodegradability and minimal toxicity. Their size ranges from 100 nm to several micrometers. Liposomal drug delivery systems improve pharmacokinetics by enabling controlled and sustained release, enhancing target specificity, and reducing systemic side effects. Applications include cancer treatment in animals and vaccine delivery, such as liposome-encapsulated muramyl tripeptide enhancing antitumor responses in canine hemangiosarcoma and vaccines inducing strong immune responses against parasitic infections. Liposomal formulations have also demonstrated efficacy against bacterial infections in veterinary pathogens like Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella spp. (Bai et al. 2018).
2.2 Polymeric and Micellar Nanoparticles
Polymeric nanoparticles derived from natural or synthetic polymers provide controlled drug release, improved solubility, and reduced toxicity. They deliver nucleic acids, proteins, and drugs efficiently and have been explored for managing bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections in animals.
Micellar nanoparticles offer high drug loading capacity and versatility, useful in transdermal delivery and oral supplementation. Examples include micellar formulations of paclitaxel for treating canine tumors and micellized vitamin E enhancing oxidative status in horses and piglets (Kim et al. 2007).
2.3 Dendrimers
Dendrimers are highly branched, symmetrical macromolecules with tunable surface functionalities enabling high drug encapsulation and efficient cellular uptake. They have been exploited for antibacterial activity, imaging, and vaccine delivery. Their multivalency enhances immunogenicity, allowing use as adjuvants or carriers for genetic material in veterinary medicine (Adibhesami et al. 2017).
2.4 Metallic Nanoparticles
Metallic nanoparticles, notably silver (AgNPs), gold (AuNPs), iron oxide, and zinc oxide (ZnO-NPs), form a significant class of nanomaterials for veterinary applications due to their antimicrobial properties and multifunctionality.
- Silver Nanoparticles (AgNPs): AgNPs exhibit broad-spectrum antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties. Their applications in veterinary medicine include vaccine adjuvants, wound dressings, antimicrobial feed supplements, and antiviral therapeutics. Studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of AgNPs against mastitis-causing bacteria, multidrug-resistant strains, and decreasing aflatoxin toxicity in poultry. Toxicity evaluations indicate their relative safety at therapeutic doses (Connor et al. 2005).
- Gold Nanoparticles (AuNPs): AuNPs are biocompatible and easily surface-functionalized, enabling diagnostic sensing, targeted drug delivery, and photothermal therapy. Veterinary uses include rapid detection of viral and bacterial infections, tumor imaging, and therapeutic agents in oncology. AuNPs have moderate antimicrobial effects compared to AgNPs but offer high potential in molecular diagnostics (Zhou et al. 2012).
- Iron Oxide Nanoparticles: Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles facilitate non-invasive cellular tracking, inflammatory reaction modulation, and imaging applications. They have been studied for potential use in veterinary stem cell tracking and diagnosis of inflammatory diseases (Zhang et al. 2007).
- Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs): ZnO-NPs possess strong antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, wound healing, angiogenic, and anticancer properties. They disrupt bacterial membranes and biofilms and have shown efficacy against mastitis pathogens. ZnO-NPs are increasingly used as feed additives to improve growth and immunity in livestock but require toxicity monitoring. Their diagnostic applications include cancer biomarker detection (Zhang et al. 2007).
2.5 Carbon-based Nanoparticles
Carbon nanomaterials such as graphene, graphene oxide (GO), reduced graphene oxide (rGO), carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and fullerenes show promise for antimicrobial, antiviral, and drug delivery applications. GO and rGO exhibit significant antibacterial activities and antiviral effects against veterinary pathogens, including suppression of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus. CNTs facilitate drug transport across biological barriers while offering selective antibacterial effects. Their biocompatibility, though generally favorable, requires further toxicological assessment (Bajpai et al. 2012).
3. Nanomaterials in Animal Health and Production
Nanotechnology has catalyzed innovations in animal disease diagnosis, treatment, nutrition, breeding, reproduction, and food safety. Nanomaterials enhance delivery and efficacy of vaccines, antimicrobials, and nutrients while reducing environmental impact and drug resistance. Immune modulation, cryopreservation of reproductive tissues, and pathogen sensing via nanobiosensors hold promis e for improving livestock health and production efficiency (Li et al. 2009; Bai et al., 2018).
Figure 2. Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) Images of Silver Nanoparticles (AgNPs) Synthesized Biologically (a) and Their Size Distribution (b) (Bai et al., 2018)
4. Challenges and Future Perspectives
Despite the remarkable advances, the application of nanotechnology in veterinary medicine faces challenges relevant to nanoparticle toxicity, biodistribution, environmental impact, and regulatory guidelines. Comprehensive in vivo studies and risk assessments are urgently needed to evaluate acute and chronic effects, especially for long-term applications in food animals.
Interdisciplinary collaboration between researchers, veterinarians, and regulatory bodies is essential to translate nanotechnological innovations into safe, effective clinical and production tools. Future developments in veterinary nanomedicine should emphasize targeted delivery systems, regenerative medicine, and integrated nanosensor platforms for real-time health monitoring and disease control.
5. Conclusion
Nanoparticles represent a versatile and powerful toolset in veterinary medicine and animal production, offering improved diagnostics, therapeutics, and improved productivity. Metallic nanoparticles, especially silver, gold, and zinc oxide, together with polymeric and carbon-based nanomaterials, demonstrate broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, controlled drug delivery capabilities, and diagnostic potential. Ongoing research and regulatory oversight will enable their safe incorporation, heralding a new era of precision veterinary healthcare and sustainable animal production.
TS. Phạm Thị Hải Hà1,* Khoa Kỹ thuật Công nghệ, Trường Đại học Văn Hiến.
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