Publications

Obesity and its associated metabolic disorders arise from complex, tissue-specific disturbances in adipose biology, liver and vascular function, pancreatic islet health and systemic inflammation. Conventional diagnostics and pharmacotherapy treat these facets separately, relying on late-stage clinical markers and non-targeted drugs. Nanotheranostics like nanoscale platforms integrating imaging and therapy in a single construct offer an opportunity to visualize and modulate obesity-related pathologies simultaneously, with spatial and temporal precision. In obesity, this includes tracking adipose tissue remodeling, inflammatory adipose tissue macrophages, brown/beige thermogenic activity, and lipid accumulation in liver and vasculature while delivering drugs, energy-converting agents or gene cargos. This review outlines the rationale for nanotheranostics in metabolic disease, the design principles of dual-function platforms, and emerging examples that couple imaging with photothermal, photodynamic, sonodynamic, catalytic or pharmacologic therapies in adipose tissue and other metabolic organs. We highlight adipose-targeted theranostic nanoparticles that promote white adipose tissue browning, locally ablate adipocytes or silence inflammatory pathways, alongside systems for monitoring and treating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and vascular complications. Translational challenges in safety, regulatory evaluation and personalization are discussed, and future directions are proposed for integrating nanotheranostics into precision obesity management.