Curvature nanocarriers: From rational design to efficient applications

Abstract As a core geometric parameter of nanocarriers, curvature exerts crucial regulatory effects in diverse fields such as biomedicine, catalysis, and materials assembly. For nanocarriers with regular geometric morphologies, the absolute value of curvature is inversely proportional to their characteristic sizes (e.g., particle size, tube diameter), and the smaller the characteristic size, the more significant the curvature effect. This paper presents the first systematic review of the design and synthesis strategies of curvature-tailored nanocarriers, while also providing an in-depth discussion of their performance across multiple application scenarios. In terms of design and synthesis, this paper establishes a classification system encompassing positive curvature, negative curvature, and mixed curvature, introduces various curvature characterization techniques including electron microscopy, scattering methods, and atomic force microscopy, and summarizes precise curvature-control synthesis strategies such as the template method, self-assembly method, controlled buckling method, and etching method. In the aspect of application evaluation, curvature-tailored nanocarriers significantly enhance intracellular endocytosis efficiency and tumor tissue penetration capacity in drug delivery; in catalytic applications, they achieve improvements in catalyst performance by regulating electronic structures, reaction kinetics, and reaction mechanisms; in materials assembly, curvature serves as a structural modulation tool to promote the development of ordered assembled architectures. This paper provides systematic theoretical support and methodological guidance for the rational design and functionalized application of curvature-tailored nanocarriers, and further prospects their future development directions in intelligent design, multifunctional integration, and industrialization.