A potential nanomedicine consisting of heparin-loaded polysaccharide nanocarriers for the treatment of asthma

Recent Advances in Nanomaterials for Asthma Treatment

Asthma is a chronic airway inflammatory disease with complex mechanisms, and these patients often encounter difficulties in their treatment course due to the heterogeneity of the disease. Currently, clinical treatments for asthma are mainly based on glucocorticoid-based combination drug therapy; however, glucocorticoid resistance and multiple side effects, as well as the occurrence of poor drug delivery, require the development of more promising treatments. Nanotechnology is an emerging technology that has been extensively researched in the medical field. Several studies have shown that drug delivery systems could significantly improve the targeting, reduce toxicity and improve the bioavailability of drugs. The use of multiple nanoparticle delivery strategies could improve the therapeutic efficacy of drugs compared to traditional delivery methods. Herein, the authors presented the mechanisms of asthma development and current therapeutic methods. Furthermore, the design and synthesis of different types of nanomaterials and micromaterials for asthma therapy are reviewed, including polymetric nanomaterials, solid lipid nanomaterials, cell membranes-based nanomaterials, and metal nanomaterials. Finally, the challenges and future perspectives of these nanomaterials are discussed to provide guidance for further research directions and hopefully promote the clinical application of nanotherapeutics in asthma treatment.

Dose-Dependent Efficacy of Umbelliferone and Gelatin-Coated ZnO/ZnS Core-Shell Nanoparticles: A Novel Arthritis Agent for Severe Knee Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a well-known autoimmune disorder that affects 1% of the global population. Zinc (Zn) is crucial for bone homeostasis, when compared with normal human bone, Zn level found to be decreased in RA patients and collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) rats. Notably, Zn-based medicinal products play a prominent role in reducing disease symptoms and acute side effects of patients with bone-related diseases. In this study, we report the clinical efficiency of gelatin- (Gel-) coated ZnO-ZnS core-shell nanoparticles (CSNPs) with umbelliferon (Uf) drug (Uf-Gel-ZnO-ZnS CSNPs) on the normal and CIA-induced Wistar rats. The formed ZnO-ZnS CSNPs are spherical in shape, with an average particle diameter of 150 ± 7 nm. It showed strong cytocompatibility when tested on L929 and foreskin fibroblasts (BJ) cells by MTT assay. While comparing with free Uf, various doses (2.5 and 5 mg) of Uf-Gel-ZnO-ZnS CSNPs showed strong inhibition of CIA by attenuated proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1β, IL-6, PEG2, and IL-17. The Uf-Gel-ZnO-ZnS CSNPs show more effectiveness in reducing joint swelling and also increase the level of antioxidant enzymes. In addition, CSNPs significantly reduced the infiltration of inflammatory cells in the knee joint. Thus, the current study concludes that Uf-Gel-ZnO-ZnS CSNPs feasibly reduce the incidence of arthritis in a dose-dependent manner by attenuation of inflammation.

Nanosystems as curative platforms for allergic disorder management

Allergy, IgE-mediated inflammatory disorders including allergic rhinitis, asthma, and conjunctivitis, affects billions of people worldwide. Conventional means of allergy management include allergen avoidance, pharmacotherapy, and emerging therapies. Among them, chemotherapeutant intake via oral, intravenous, and intranasal routes is always the most common mean. Although current pharmacotherapy exhibit splendid anti-allergic effects, short in situ retention, low bioavailability, and systemic side effects are inevitable. Nowadays, nanoplatforms have provided alternative therapeutic options to obviate the existing weakness via enhancing the solubility of hydrophobic therapeutic agents, achieving in situ drug accumulation, exhibiting controlled and long-time drug release at lesion areas, and providing multi-functional therapeutic strategies. Herein, we highlight the clinical therapeutic strategies and deal with characteristics of the nanoplatform design in allergy interventions via intratracheal, gastrointestinal, intravenous, and ocular paths. The promising therapeutic utilization in a variety of allergic disorders is discussed, and recent perspectives on the feasible advances of nanoplatforms in allergy management are also exploited.

The key role of the drug self-aggregation ability to obtain optimal nanocarriers based on aromatic-aromatic drug-polymer interactions

The efficient association and controlled release of hydrophilic and aromatic low molecular-weight drugs (HALMD) still remains a challenge due to their relatively weak interactions with excipients and strong affinity to water. Considering that a wide variety of drugs to treat chronic diseases are HALMD, their inclusion in polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) constitutes an attractive possibility by providing to these drugs with controllable physiochemical properties, preventing crisis episodes, decreasing dose-dependent side effects and promoting therapeutic adhesiveness. However, the strong interaction of HALMD with the aqueous medium jeopardizes their encapsulation and controlled release. In this work, the role of the self-assembly tendency of HALMD on their association with the aromatic excipient poly(sodium 4-styrensulfonate) (PSS) to form NPs is studied. For this aim, the widely used drugs amitriptyline (AMT), promethazine (PMZ), and chlorpheniramine (CPM) are selected due to their well described critical aggregation concentration (cac) (36 mM for AMT, 36 mM for PMZ, and 69.5 mM for CPM). These drugs undergo aromatic-aromatic interactions with the polymer, which stabilize their mutual binding, as seen by NMR. The simple mixing of solutions of opposite charged molecules (drug + PSS) allowed obtaining NPs. Importantly, comparing the three drugs, the formation of NPs occurred at significantly lower absolute concentration and significantly lower drug/polymer ratio as the cac takes lower values, indicating a stronger binding to the polymer, as also deduced from the respective drug/polymer dissociation constant values. In addition, the number of formed NPs is similar for all formulations, even though a much lower concentration of the drug and polymer is present in systems comprising lower cac. The obtained NPs are spheroidal and present size between 100 and 160 nm, low polydispersity (≤0.3) and negative zeta potential (from -30 to -60 mV). The association efficiency reaches values ≥ 83% and drug loading could achieve values up to 68% (never evidenced before for systems comprising HALMD). In addition, drug release studies are also significantly influenced by cac, providing more prolonged release for AMT and PMZ (lower cac), whose delivery profiles adjust to the Korsmeyer-Peppas equation. As a novelty of this work, a synergic contribution of drug self-association tendency and aromatic-aromatic interaction between the drug and polymers is highlighted, a fact that could be crucial for the rational design and development of efficient drug delivery systems.

The Possible Uses and Challenges of Nanomaterials in Mast Cell Research

Mast cells are tissue-resident immune cells that are involved in inflammation and fibrosis but also serve beneficial roles, including tissue maintenance, angiogenesis, pathogen clearance, and immunoregulation. Their multifaceted response and the ability of their mediators to target multiple organs and tissues means that mast cells play important roles in numerous conditions, including asthma, atopic dermatitis, drug sensitivities, ischemic heart disease, Alzheimer disease, arthritis, irritable bowel syndrome, infections (parasites, bacteria and viruses), and cancer. As a result, mast cells have become an important target for drug discovery and diagnostic research. Recent work has focused on applying novel nanotechnologies to explore cell biology. In this brief review, we will highlight the use of nanomaterials to modify mast cell functions and will discuss the potential of these technologies as research tools for understanding mast cell biology.

Aerosolized hyaluronic acid decorated, ferulic acid loaded chitosan nanoparticle: A promising asthma control strategy

Vibrating mesh nebulizers are recognized as the most efficient actuation technique over conventional inhalers for drug deposition. This study explored hyaluronic acid (HA) decorated, ferulic acid (FA) loaded chitosan (CS) nanoparticle (FACHA) aerosolized using vibrating mesh nebulizer as strategic combination of drug, nanocarrier and delivery device for effective asthma control. FACHA exhibited spherical morphology with suitable size (164.2 ± 9.7 nm), zeta potential (24.0 ± 0.5 mV), entrapment efficiency (EE%) (65.0 ± 1.5), loading capacity (LC%) (18.5 ± 0.4) and mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of 1.81 ± 0.15 µm, ascertaining efficient drug deposition. In vivo inhalation toxicity assessment confirmed safety, while, FACHA prophylaxis mitigated inflammation, airway hypersensitivity and remodelling in ovalbumin (OVA) induced mice models. The results thus accentuated the role of pro-pulmonary surface chemistry conferred by HA functionalization that improved 1) thermal stability (thermogravimetric analysis - TGA) and 2) therapeutic efficacy of FA, by facilitating better interaction and transportation across mucus barrier, which otherwise suffers poor bioavailability and rapid metabolism.

Alternative approaches for the treatment of airway diseases: focus on nanoparticle medicine

Despite the various treatment options and international guidelines currently available for the appropriate therapeutic management of asthma, a large population of patients with asthma continues to have poorly controlled disease. There is therefore a need for novel approaches to achieve better asthma control, especially for severe asthmatics. This review discusses the use of nanoparticles for the specific targeting of inflammatory pathways as a promising approach for the effective control of severe persistent asthma as well as other chronic inflammatory diseases.

Heparin: new life for an old drug

Heparin is one of the oldest drugs, which nevertheless remains in widespread clinical use as an inhibitor of blood coagulation. The history of its identification a century ago unfolded amid one of the most fascinating scientific controversies turning around the distribution of credit for its discovery. The composition, purification and structure-function relationship of this naturally occurring glycosaminoglycan regarding its classical role as anticoagulant will be dealt with before proceeding to discuss its therapeutic potential in, among other, inflammatory and infectious disease, cancer treatment, cystic fibrosis and Alzheimer's disease. The first bibliographic reference hit using the words 'nanomedicine' and 'heparin' is as recent as 2008. Since then, nanomedical applications of heparin have experienced an exponential growth that will be discussed in detail, with particular emphasis on its antimalarial activity. Some of the most intriguing potential applications of heparin nanomedicines will be exposed, such as those contemplating the delivery of drugs to the mosquito stages of malaria parasites.

Inhaled Heparin: Therapeutic Efficacy and Recent Formulations

Heparin is well known for its anticoagulant and anti-inflammatory properties. Inhaled heparin regimens are increasingly being used to manage lung disease. It has been used to treat cystic fibrosis, thromboembolism, and pulmonary fibrosis, as well as bronchial asthma and asthma-induced airway hypersensitivity. Several preclinical studies attained some useful effects of heparin-administered, parenterally and through inhalation, treatment of lung disease. Besides, recent clinical trials suggest that inhaled heparin for lung diseases is beneficial and safe, but such data remain to be limited. In 2005, the orphan designation was granted by the European Commission for heparin sodium (inhalation use) for the treatment of cystic fibrosis. The positive results of heparin in the pulmonary route necessitate a focus on the preparation and evaluation of heparin in advanced drug delivery systems, namely nano/microparticles and liposomes. Through this pulmonary delivery, heparin is protected from enzymatic degradation within the airway. Heparin is thus passively targeted into the lungs, and long-lasting localized treatment is achieved. On the other hand, these systems have encountered several problems as follows: (1) polymers, such as poly-L-lactide-glycolic acid, poly (lactic acid), and chitosan, used to prepare heparin-loaded microparticle/nanoparticle (MP/NP) systems have not been granted approval for lung application by the FDA and (2) liposomal and NP formulation stability is the main problem of formulation design. We propose that additional in vitro and in vivo research is necessary to assess the clinical applicability of this treatment strategy. The present article discusses heparin treatments for lung diseases and the use of heparin and/or heparin-loaded drugs in advanced delivery systems through the pulmonary route.

Aluminum-doped zinc oxide nanoparticles attenuate the TSLP levels via suppressing caspase-1 in activated mast cells

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZO-NPs) are used as antimicrobials, anti-inflammatories, and to treat cancer. However, although ZO-NPs have excellent efficiency and specificity, their cytotoxicity is higher than that of micron-sized zinc oxide. Doping ZO-NPs with aluminum can improve therapeutic efficacy, but the biological effects and mechanisms involved have not been elucidated. Here, we reported the efficacy of aluminum-doped ZO-NP (AZO) on thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) production and caspase-1 activation in human mast cell line, HMC-1 cells. AZO significantly reduced TSLP levels as well as interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α without inducing cytotoxicity. Furthermore, AZO more effectively reduced TSLP, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α levels than ZO-NP. The levels of inflammatory cytokine mRNA were also reduced by AZO treatment. AZO blocked production of IL-1β and activations of caspase-1 and nuclear factor-κB by inhibiting IκB kinase β and receptor interacting protein 2. In addition, AZO attenuated phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases, such as extracellular signal-regulated kinase, c-Jun N-terminal kinases, and p38. These findings provide evidence that AZO improves anti-inflammatory properties and offer a safe and effective potential treatment option.

Low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH)-loaded large porous PEG-PLGA particles for the treatment of asthma

BACKGROUND

Heparin-like compounds interrupt leukocyte adhesion and migration, and prevent release of chemical mediators during the process of inflammation. However, little is known whether the anti-inflammatory property of smaller heparin fragments, low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH), plays any role in the process of airway inflammation. In this study, we sought to evaluate the efficacy of LMWH-loaded large porous polyethylene glycol-poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) (PEG-PLGA) particulate formulations in alleviating the cellular and biochemical changes associated with asthma.

METHODS

To study the pharmacological efficacy of LMWH for the treatment of asthma, we have used a previously optimized polymeric formulation of LMWH. The anti-asthmatic efficacy of the optimized formulation was studied in an ovalbumin-sensitized rat model of asthma. The influence of the formulation on asthmatic lungs was assessed by measuring the total protein content and number of inflammatory cells in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Lungs were also examined for morphological and structural changes that may occur in asthmatic lungs.

RESULTS

Compared with healthy animals, asthmatic animals showed a seven- and threefold increase in the protein content and number of inflammatory cells in BALF, respectively. However, intratracheal LMWH particles reduced the protein content by 2.5-fold and the number of inflammatory cells by 1.8-fold-comparable to those of sham animals. Similarly, LMWH particles reduced the lactate dehydrogenase levels by 2.8- and threefold in BALF and plasma, respectively. The airway wall thickness also decreased from 47.37±6.02 μm to 21.35±3.60 μm upon treatment with PEG-PLGA particles of LMWH. Goblet cell hyperplasia was also reduced in asthmatic rats treated with LMWH particles.

CONCLUSION

PLGA particles of LMWH were efficacious in improving cellular and histological changes associated with asthma, and thus this polymeric formulation has the potential for further development into a clinically viable anti-asthma therapy.