Abstract

 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.