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Zhao L, Arias SL, Zipfel W, Brito IL, Yeo J. Coarse-grained modeling and dynamics tracking of nanoparticles diffusion in human gut mucus. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 267:131434. [PMID: 38614182 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.131434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2023] [Revised: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 04/04/2024] [Indexed: 04/15/2024]
Abstract
The gastrointestinal (GI) tract's mucus layer serves as a critical barrier and a mediator in drug nanoparticle delivery. The mucus layer's diverse molecular structures and spatial complexity complicates the mechanistic study of the diffusion dynamics of particulate materials. In response, we developed a bi-component coarse-grained mucus model, specifically tailored for the colorectal cancer environment, that contained the two most abundant glycoproteins in GI mucus: Muc2 and Muc5AC. This model demonstrated the effects of molecular composition and concentration on mucus pore size, a key determinant in the permeability of nanoparticles. Using this computational model, we investigated the diffusion rate of polyethylene glycol (PEG) coated nanoparticles, a widely used muco-penetrating nanoparticle. We validated our model with experimentally characterized mucus pore sizes and the diffusional coefficients of PEG-coated nanoparticles in the mucus collected from cultured human colorectal goblet cells. Machine learning fingerprints were then employed to provide a mechanistic understanding of nanoparticle diffusional behavior. We found that larger nanoparticles tended to be trapped in mucus over longer durations but exhibited more ballistic diffusion over shorter time spans. Through these discoveries, our model provides a promising platform to study pharmacokinetics in the GI mucus layer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liming Zhao
- Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Sandra L Arias
- Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Warren Zipfel
- Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Ilana L Brito
- Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA.
| | - Jingjie Yeo
- Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA.
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Firoznezhad M, Abi-Rached R, Fulgheri F, Aroffu M, Leyva-Jiménez FJ, de la Luz Cádiz Gurrea M, Meloni MC, Corrias F, Escribano-Ferrer E, Peris JE, Manca ML, Manconi M. Design and in vitro effectiveness evaluation of Echium amoenum extract loaded in bioadhesive phospholipid vesicles tailored for mucosal delivery. Int J Pharm 2023; 634:122650. [PMID: 36716832 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2023.122650] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
The Echium amoenum Fisch. and C.A. Mey. (E. amoenum) is an herb native from Iranian shrub, and its blue-violet flowers are traditionally used as medical plants. In the present study, an antioxidant phytocomplex was extracted from the flowers of E. amoenum by ultrasounds-assisted hydroalcoholic maceration. The main components, contained in the extract, have been detected using HPLC-DAD, and rosmarinic acid was found to be the most abundant. The antioxidant power of the extract along with the phenolic content were measured using colorimetric assays. The extract was loaded in liposomes, which were enriched adding different bioadhesive polymers (i.e., mucin, xanthan gum and carboxymethyl cellulose sodium salt) individually or in combination. The main physico-chemical properties (i.e. size, size distribution, surface charge) of the prepared vesicles were measured as well as their stability on storage. The viscosity of dispersion and the ability of vesicles to interact with mucus were evaluated measuring their stability in a mucin dispersion and mobility in a mucin film. The biocompatibility and the ability of the formulations to protect keratinocytes from damages caused by hydrogen peroxide and to promote the cell migration were measured in vitro.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Firoznezhad
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, 84084 Fisciano, SA, Italy; Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy; Dipartimento di Scienze Farmaceutiche, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Rita Abi-Rached
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Federica Fulgheri
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Matteo Aroffu
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy; NanoBioCel Group, School of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Francisco-Javier Leyva-Jiménez
- Department of Analytical Chemistry and Food Science and Technology, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Ronda de Calatrava 7, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain; Regional Institute for Applied Scientific Research (IRICA), Area of Food Science, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Avenida Camilo Jose Cela, 10, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - María de la Luz Cádiz Gurrea
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Fuentenueva s/n, E-18071 Granada, Spain
| | - Maria Cristina Meloni
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Francesco Corrias
- Food Toxicology Unit, Department of Life and Environmental Science, University Campus of Monserrato, University of Cagliari, SS 554, Cagliari 09042, Italy
| | - Elvira Escribano-Ferrer
- Biopharmaceutics and Pharmacokinetics Unit, Institute for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josè Esteban Peris
- Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Technology and Parasitology, University of Valencia, Burjassot, 46100 Valencia, Spain
| | - Maria Letizia Manca
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy.
| | - Maria Manconi
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
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Posel Z, Svoboda M, Colina CM, Lísal M. Flow and aggregation of rod-like proteins in slit and cylindrical pores coated with polymer brushes: an insight from dissipative particle dynamics. SOFT MATTER 2017; 13:1634-1645. [PMID: 28133676 DOI: 10.1039/c6sm02751b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
We use a meso-scale dissipative particle dynamics method to simulate the flow and aggregation of rod-like protein solutions through pores grafted with a solvent-sensitive polymer brush. The coated pores can control protein permeability and aggregation by a stretch-to-collapse conformational transition of the brush polymers in response to changes in the solvent quality. The protein solutions mimic aqueous glycoprotein solutions and proteins are represented as rod-like objects formed by coarse-grain beads. The model further employs two types of beads to represent the existence of cystein-like terminal groups in real glycoproteins and mimic the aggregation of real glycoproteins in aqueous solutions. We vary the solvent quality with respect to the brush chains and study the flow and aggregation of rod-like proteins in the slit and cylindrical pores as the brush polymers undergo the stretch-to-collapse transition. The results show that stretched brush chains close the pore, hamper proteins' flow and promote proteins' aggregation. The collapsed brush chains open the pores for proteins' flow and suppress their aggregation. Therefore, we observe more than a ten-fold reduction in the permeation rate of proteins in both pore geometries. Finally, due to pore confinement, larger proteins' aggregates are formed in the slit pore than in the cylindrical pore, while more pronounced orientation of proteins in the flow direction is seen in the cylindrical pore than in the slit pore.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zbyšek Posel
- Department of Informatics, Faculty of Science, J. E. Purkinje University, Ústí n. Lab., Czech Republic. and Laboratory of Aerosols Chemistry and Physics, Institute of Chemical Process Fundamentals of the CAS, v. v. i., Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Svoboda
- Laboratory of Aerosols Chemistry and Physics, Institute of Chemical Process Fundamentals of the CAS, v. v. i., Prague, Czech Republic and Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, J. E. Purkinje University, Ústí n. Lab., Czech Republic
| | - Coray M Colina
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Martin Lísal
- Laboratory of Aerosols Chemistry and Physics, Institute of Chemical Process Fundamentals of the CAS, v. v. i., Prague, Czech Republic and Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, J. E. Purkinje University, Ústí n. Lab., Czech Republic
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