Abstract

Obesity and diabetes mellitus (DM) are interrelated global health crises, jointly termed diabesity, that arise from 
complex metabolic, genetic, and behavioral factors. Both conditions promote insulin resistance, oxidative stress, 
and systemic inflammation, predisposing patients to cardiovascular and hepatic comorbidities. Conventional 
pharmacotherapy is hampered by low bioavailability, off-target toxicity, and poor compliance, creating an urgent 
need for innovative modalities. Nanotechnology offers transformative potential by improving drug solubility, 
stability, and targeted delivery while enabling precise glucose monitoring and metabolic regulation. Nanoscale 
carriers such as liposomes, dendrimers, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), and polymeric nanostructures facilitate 
controlled drug release, enhance intestinal permeability, and enable tissue-specific accumulation in adipose or 
pancreatic tissues. Metallic nanoparticles and quantum dots have also advanced biosensing applications, 
allowing real-time detection of glucose and insulin biomarkers. Moreover, nanotheranostic systems integrate 
diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities, aligning with personalized medicine paradigms. Despite promising 
preclinical data, translational challenges, including immunogenicity, scalability, and regulatory uncertainty, 
impede clinical adoption. This review outlines recent advances in nano-enabled antidiabetic and anti-obesity 
therapies, highlighting mechanistic insights, nanotoxicological considerations, and the roadmap toward safe 
clinical translation. Nanotechnology thus emerges as a convergent frontier for addressing diabesity through 
precision, biocompatibility, and multifunctional design.