**14. Conclusions**

The application of nanotechnology to drug delivery has already had a significant impact on many areas of medicine. Currently, more than 20 nanoparticle therapeutics are in clinical use, validating the ability of nanoparticles to improve the therapeutic index of drugs. In addition to the already approved nanoparticles, numerous other nanoparticle platforms are currently under various stages of preclinical and clinical development, including various liposomes, polymeric micelles, dendrimers, quantum dots, gold nanoparticles, and ceramic nanoparticles. More complex systems such as multifunctional nanoparticles that are concurrently capable of targeting, imaging, and therapy are the subjects of future researches.

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The currently approved nanoparticle systems have in some cases improved the therapeu‐ tic index of drugs by reducing drug toxicity or enhancing drug efficacy. Future research efforts need to be directed towards finding new methods for nanotoxicology, recognition of biological effects of nanoparticles in the environment, and creation of the bases of nanobiomonitoring.
