Table 1.

Nucleic acid delivery vectors

Delivery system	Classification	Advantages	Disadvantages
Viral vectors	Adenovirus Adeno-associated virus, lentivirus Retrovirus Herpes simplex viruses	High transduction efficiency High tolerance Standardized transduction procedures Long-term and stable gene expression	Limited loading space High immunogenicity Risk of insertional mutagenesis, Potential carcinogenicity
Lipid-based nanoparticles	Liposomes Lipid nanoparticles Solid lipid nanoparticles Nanostructured lipid carriers	Good biocompatibility Easy preparation Large drug encapsulation space	Toxicity and immunogenicity Limited stability
Polymer nanoparticles	Chitosan nanoparticles PLGA nanoparticles, Dendrimers	Good biocompatibility and biodegradability Ability to target specific cells Easy functionalization Controlled drug release	Toxicity Non-degradability for some chitosan nanoparticles
Inorganic nanoparticles	Metal nanoparticles Iron-based nanoparticles Bimetallic nanoparticles Carbon-based nanostructures Selenium nanoparticles Silica nanoparticles Quantum dots	Easy surface modification High loading capacity and fast release rates Noninvasive imaging	Potential toxicity Non-degradability
Extracellular vesicles and exosomes	Exosomes Microvesicles Apoptotic bodies	Good biocompatibility and biodegradability High permeability Low immunogenicity Long half-life High delivery efficiency	Uncontrollable genomic or protein components Potential toxicity High cost
Nucleic acid conjugates	GalNAc molecular conjugation Aptamer	Low immunogenicity Ability to target specific cells Long-term and gene expression	Low stability Potential toxicity Limited targets