Optimising PLGA-PEG Nanoparticle Size and Distribution for Enhanced Drug Targeting to the Inflamed Intestinal Barrier

Dehydrocurvularin-loaded mPEG-PLGA nanoparticles for targeted breast cancer drug delivery: preparation, characterization, in vitro, and in vivo evaluation

Dehydrocurvularin (DCV) is a promising lead compound for anti-cancer therapy. Unfortunately, the development of DCV-based drugs has been hampered by its poor solubility and bioavailability. Herein, we prepared a DCV-loaded mPEG-PLGA nanoparticles (DCV-NPs) with improved drug properties and therapeutic efficacy. The spherical and discrete particles of DCV-NPs had a uniform diameter of 101.8 ± 0.45 nm and negative zeta potential of -22.5 ± 1.12 mV (pH = 7.4), and its entrapment efficiency (EE) and drug loading (DL) were ∼53.28 ± 1.12 and 10.23 ± 0.30%, respectively. In vitro the release of DCV-NPs lasted for more than 120 h in a sustained-release pattern, its antiproliferation efficacy towards breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, and 4T1) was better than that of starting drug DCV, and it could be efficiently and rapidly internalised by breast cancer cells. In vivo DCV-NPs were gradually accumulated in tumour areas of mice and significantly suppressed tumour growth. In summary, loading water-insoluble DCV onto nanoparticles has the potential to be an effective agent for breast cancer therapy with injectable property and tumour targeting capacity.

Nanotherapeutic Heterogeneity: Sources, Effects, and Solutions

Nanomaterials have revolutionized medicine by enabling control over drugs' pharmacokinetics, biodistribution, and biocompatibility. However, most nanotherapeutic batches are highly heterogeneous, meaning they comprise nanoparticles that vary in size, shape, charge, composition, and ligand functionalization. Similarly, individual nanotherapeutics often have heterogeneously distributed components, ligands, and charges. This review discusses nanotherapeutic heterogeneity's sources and effects on experimental readouts and therapeutic efficacy. Among other topics, it demonstrates that heterogeneity exists in nearly all nanotherapeutic types, examines how nanotherapeutic heterogeneity arises, and discusses how heterogeneity impacts nanomaterials' in vitro and in vivo behavior. How nanotherapeutic heterogeneity skews experimental readouts and complicates their optimization and clinical translation is also shown. Lastly, strategies for limiting nanotherapeutic heterogeneity are reviewed and recommendations for developing more reproducible and effective nanotherapeutics provided.

Use of Poly Lactic-co-glycolic Acid Nano and Micro Particles in the Delivery of Drugs Modulating Different Phases of Inflammation

Chronic inflammation contributes to the pathogenesis of many diseases, including apparently unrelated conditions such as metabolic disorders, cardiovascular diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, osteoporosis, and tumors, but the use of conventional anti-inflammatory drugs to treat these diseases is generally not very effective given their adverse effects. In addition, some alternative anti-inflammatory medications, such as many natural compounds, have scarce solubility and stability, which are associated with low bioavailability. Therefore, encapsulation within nanoparticles (NPs) may represent an effective strategy to enhance the pharmacological properties of these bioactive molecules, and poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) NPs have been widely used because of their high biocompatibility and biodegradability and possibility to finely tune erosion time, hydrophilic/hydrophobic nature, and mechanical properties by acting on the polymer's composition and preparation technique. Many studies have been focused on the use of PLGA-NPs to deliver immunosuppressive treatments for autoimmune and allergic diseases or to elicit protective immune responses, such as in vaccination and cancer immunotherapy. By contrast, this review is focused on the use of PLGA NPs in preclinical in vivo models of other diseases in which a key role is played by chronic inflammation or unbalance between the protective and reparative phases of inflammation, with a particular focus on intestinal bowel disease; cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, osteoarticular, and ocular diseases; and wound healing.

Oral infliximab nanomedicines for targeted treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Anti-TNF biological therapies such as infliximab (INF) have revolutionised the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). However, serious adverse effects due to systemic administration can significantly impact patient quality of life, limiting their success. Oral nanomedicines propose an innovative solution to provide local delivery to inflamed gastrointestinal tissues, thereby limiting systemic exposure and enhancing therapeutic efficacy. This study aimed to examine the potential of INF nanomedicines for IBD treatment with a focus on nanoparticle (NP) size to modulate the targeting of INF to the epithelial barrier.

METHODS

Healthy and inflamed in vitro models of the intestinal epithelial barrier were established to examine the cell interaction of PLGA-PEGNPs of varying particle sizes and polydispersities. INF-loaded NPs were prepared by electrostatic interaction of INF with NPs and examined for their therapeutic efficacy in the inflamed epithelial cell barrier model.

RESULTS

NP interaction was significantly enhanced in the inflamed cell barrier model, with increased transport observed for 130 - 300 nm NPs and accumulation of larger NPs (∼600 nm) at the barrier. Delivery of INF directly to the inflamed barrier by ∼600 nm NPs accelerated recovery of barrier integrity and reduced inflammatory cytokine secretion and cytotoxicity in comparison to treatment with INF alone.

CONCLUSIONS

Results from this study show that NP particle size can be used to differentially target and treat the inflamed intestinal barrier. Oral INF nanomedicines of modulated size present a novel strategy for the local, targeted treatment of IBD.

Design and Development of Levodopa Loaded Polymeric Nanoparticles for Intranasal Delivery

Intranasal delivery is an alternative administration route to deliver levodopa (L-Dopa) to the brain. This drug delivery route offers high drug permeability across the nasal epithelium and rapid absorption into the central nervous system (CNS) while bypassing first-pass metabolism. In this study, we developed a library of polymeric nanocarrier systems for L-Dopa utilising poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and chitosan. A total of three PLGA nanoparticles formulations (P1, P2 and P3) were prepared using a modified water-in-oil-in-water (W/O/W) solvent evaporation technique, while four formulations of chitosan nanoparticles (C1, C2, C3 and C4) were prepared by ionic gelation method with sodium tripolyphosphate (TPP) as a cross-linking agent. Upon characterising nanocarriers developed, it was discovered that C2 demonstrated the best results with regard to droplet size (553 ± 52 nm), polydispersity index (0.522), zeta potential (+46.2 ± 2.3 mV), and encapsulation efficiency (82.38% ± 1.63). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) further corroborated the particle size analysis highlighting that C2 displayed uniform particle size with spherical morphology. Additionally, X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) revealed that C2 was in an amorphous state while Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis showed that there were no chemical interactions that might change the chemical structure of L-Dopa within the polymeric nanoparticle matrix. Lastly, an in-vivo intranasal study in male Wistar rats showed that the absorption of L-Dopa when formulated as chitosan nanoparticles was significantly enhanced (p < 0.05) by approximately two-fold compared to unmodified L-Dopa. Therefore, this work illustrates that formulating L-Dopa into chitosan nanoparticles for intranasal delivery is a potentially viable formulation strategy to improve the bioavailability of the drug for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease.

PLGA/PEG Nanoparticles Loaded with Cyclodextrin-Peganum harmala Alkaloid Complex and Ascorbic Acid with Promising Antimicrobial Activities

Antimicrobial drugs face numerous challenges, including drug resistance, systemic toxic effects, and poor bioavailability. To date, treatment choices are limited, which warrants the search for novel potent antivirals, including those extracted from natural products. The seeds of Peganum harmala L. (Zygophyllaceae family) have been reported to have antimicrobial, antifungal, and anticancer activities. In the present study, a 2-hydroxy propyl-β-cyclodextrin (HPβCD)/harmala alkaloid-rich fraction (HARF) host-guest complex was prepared using a thin-film hydration method to improve the water solubility and bioavailability of HARF. The designed complex was then co-encapsulated with ascorbic acid into PLGA nanoparticles coated with polyethylene glycol (HARF-HPßCD/AA@PLGA-PEG NPs) using the W/O/W multiple emulsion-solvent evaporation method. The average particle size, PDI, and zeta potential were 207.90 ± 2.60 nm, 0.17 ± 0.01, and 31.6 ± 0.20 mV, respectively. The entrapment efficiency for HARF was 81.60 ± 1.20% and for ascorbic acid was 88 ± 2.20%. HARF-HPßCD/AA@PLGA-PEG NPs had the highest antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli (MIC of 0.025 mg/mL). They also exhibited high selective antiviral activity against the H1N1 influenza virus (IC50 2.7 μg/mL) without affecting the host (MDCK cells). In conclusion, the co-encapsulation of HPCD-HARF complex and ascorbic acid into PLGA-PEG nanoparticles significantly increased the selective H1N1 killing activity with minimum host toxic effects.

The Brassica Napus Extract (BNE)-Loaded PLGA Nanoparticles as an Early Necroptosis and Late Apoptosis Inducer in Human MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cells

Loading of the Brassica napus extract (BNE) on PLGA nanoparticle (BNE-PNP) and study its necroptotic activity in human MCF7-breast cancer cells. Double emulsion solvent evaporation methods were used for synthesis of BNE-PNP and DLS, SEM, and surface Zeta-potential analysis were applied for defining the physicochemical properties of BNE-PNP. The cytotoxic impact of BNE-PNP nanoparticles was analyzed by MTT assay and expression of apoptotic (P53 and Cas-3) and necrotic (TNF-α) gene markers were measured by qPCR to evaluate the BNE-PNP-induced cell death type. The stable (-36.07 mV) BNE-PNP were synthesized at 71.07 nm dimension. They significantly decrease the count of metabolically active MCF7 cells (IC₅₀: 170.94 µg/ml after 48 h). The BNE-PNP induced an early programmed necrotic (necroptosis) and late apoptotic death on the MCF7 cancer cells by up-regulating all the P53/TNF-α and Cas-3 gene expression, respectively. The BNE-PNP dose-dependently induced an early cell-selective necroptotic death. Since the necroptotic death is known as a biocompatible cellular death induction, the BNE-PNP have the potential to be used as a safe efficient anticancer compound.

A Novel Sustained Anti-Inflammatory Effect of Atorvastatin-Calcium PLGA Nanoparticles: In Vitro Optimization and In Vivo Evaluation

Atorvastatin Calcium (At-Ca) has pleiotropic effect as anti-inflammatory drug beside its main antihyperlipidemic action. Our study was conducted to modulate the anti-inflammatory effect of At-Ca to be efficiently sustained for longer time. Single oil-water emulsion solvent evaporation technique was used to fabricate At-Ca into polymeric nanoparticles (NPs). In vitro optimization survey was performed on Poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) loaded with At-Ca regrading to particle size, polydispersity index (PDI), zeta potential, percent entrapment efficiency (% EE), surface morphology and in vitro release pattern. In vitro drug-polymers interactions were fully scanned using Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Differential Scanning calorimetry (DSC) proving that the method of fabrication is an optimal strategy maintaining the drug structure with no interaction with polymeric matrix. The optimized formula with particle size (248.2 ± 15.13 nm), PDI (0.126 ± 0.048), zeta potential (-12.41 ± 4.80 mV), % EE (87.63 ± 3.21%), initial burst (39.78 ± 6.74%) and percent cumulative release (83.63 ± 3.71%) was orally administered in Male Sprague-Dawley rats to study the sustained anti-inflammatory effect of At-Ca PLGA NPs after carrageenan induced inflammation. In vivo results demonstrate that AT-Ca NPs has a sustained effect extending for approximately three days. Additionally, the histological examination revealed that the epidermal/dermal layers restore their typical normal cellular alignment with healthy architecture.