Gold Half-Shell-Coated Paclitaxel-Loaded PLGA Nanoparticles for the Targeted Chemo-Photothermal Treatment of Cancer.

Conventional cancer therapies suffer from nonspecificity, drug resistance, and a poor bioavailability, which trigger severe side effects. To overcome these disadvantages, in this study, we designed and evaluated the in vitro potential of paclitaxel-loaded, PLGA-gold, half-shell nanoparticles (PTX-PLGA/Au-HS NPs) conjugated with cyclo(Arg-Gly-Asp-Phe-Lys) (cyRGDfk) as a targeted chemo-photothermal therapy system in HeLa and MDA-MB-231 cancer cells. A TEM analysis confirmed the successful gold half-shell structure formation. High-performance liquid chromatography showed an encapsulation efficiency of the paclitaxel inside nanoparticles of more than 90%. In the release study, an initial burst release of about 20% in the first 24 h was observed, followed by a sustained drug release for a period as long as 10 days, reaching values of about 92% and 49% for NPs with and without near infrared laser irradiation. In in vitro cell internalization studies, targeted nanoparticles showed a higher accumulation than nontargeted nanoparticles, possibly through a specific interaction of the cyRGDfk with their homologous receptors, the ανß3 y ανß5 integrins on the cell surface. Compared with chemotherapy or photothermal treatment alone, the combined treatment demonstrated a synergistic effect, reducing the cell viability to 23% for the HeLa cells and 31% for the MDA-MB-231 cells. Thus, our results indicate that these multifuncional nanoparticles can be considered to be a promising targeted chemo-photothermal therapy system against cancer.

Innovative Rocuronium Bromide Topical Formulation for Targeted Skin Drug Delivery: Design, Comprehensive Characterization, In Vitro 2D/3D Human Cell Culture and Permeation.

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is the second-most common type of non-melanoma skin cancer and is linked to long-term exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun. Rocuronium bromide (RocBr) is an FDA-approved drug that targets p53-related protein kinase (PRPK) that inhibits the development of UV-induced cSCC. This study aimed to investigate the physicochemical properties and in vitro behavior of RocBr. Techniques such as thermal analysis, electron microscopy, spectroscopy and in vitro assays were used to characterize RocBr. A topical oil/water emulsion lotion formulation of RocBr was successfully developed and evaluated. The in vitro permeation behavior of RocBr from its lotion formulation was quantified with Strat-M® synthetic biomimetic membrane and EpiDerm™ 3D human skin tissue. Significant membrane retention of RocBr drug was evident and more retention was obtained with the lotion formulation compared with the solution. This is the first systematic and comprehensive study to report these findings.

Gold Nanorods with Mesoporous Silica Shell: A Promising Platform for Cisplatin Delivery.

The versatile combination of metal nanoparticles with chemotherapy agents makes designing multifunctional drug delivery systems attractive. In this work, we reported cisplatin's encapsulation and release profile using a mesoporous silica-coated gold nanorods system. Gold nanorods were synthesized by an acidic seed-mediated method in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide surfactant, and the silica-coated state was obtained by modified Stöber method. The silica shell was modified first with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane and then with succinic anhydride to obtain carboxylates groups to improve cisplatin encapsulation. Gold nanorods with an aspect ratio of 3.2 and silica shell thickness of 14.74 nm were obtained, and infrared spectroscopy and ζ potential studies corroborated surface modification with carboxylates groups. On the other hand, cisplatin was encapsulated under optimal conditions with an efficiency of ~58%, and it was released in a controlled manner over 96 h. Furthermore, acidic pH promoted a faster release of 72% cisplatin encapsulated compared to 51% in neutral pH.

Nose-to-Brain Delivery of Therapeutic Peptides as Nasal Aerosols.

Central nervous system (CNS) disorders, such as psychiatric disorders, neurodegeneration, chronic pain, stroke, brain tumor, spinal cord injury, and many other CNS diseases, would hugely benefit from specific and potent peptide pharmaceuticals and their low inherent toxicity. The delivery of peptides to the brain is challenging due to their low metabolic stability, which decreases their duration of action, poor penetration of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), and their incompatibility with oral administration, typically resulting in the need for parenteral administration. These challenges limit peptides' clinical application and explain the interest in alternative routes of peptide administration, particularly nose-to-brain (N-to-B) delivery, which allows protein and peptide drugs to reach the brain noninvasively. N-to-B delivery can be a convenient method for rapidly targeting the CNS, bypassing the BBB, and minimizing systemic exposure; the olfactory and trigeminal nerves provide a unique pathway to the brain and the external environment. This review highlights the intranasal delivery of drugs, focusing on peptide delivery, illustrating various clinical applications, nasal delivery devices, and the scope and limitations of this approach.

Design, Physicochemical Characterization, and In Vitro Permeation of Innovative Resatorvid Topical Formulations for Targeted Skin Drug Delivery.

Nonmelanoma skin cancers (NMSCs) are the most common malignancies worldwide and affect more than 5 million people in the United States every year. NMSC is directly linked to the excessive exposure of the skin to solar ultraviolet (UV) rays. The toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) antagonist, resatorvid (TAK-242), is a novel prototype chemo preventive agent that suppresses the production of inflammation mediators induced by UV exposure. This study aimed to design and develop TAK-242 into topical formulations using FDA-approved excipients, including DermaBaseTM, PENcreamTM, polyethylene glycol (PEG)-400, propylene glycol (PG), carbomer gel, hyaluronic acid (HA) gel, and Pluronic® F-127 poloxamer triblock copolymer gel for the prevention of skin cancer. The physicochemical properties of raw TAK-242, which influence the compatibility and solubility in the selected base materials, were confirmed using X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), hot-stage microscopy (HSM), Raman spectroscopy, and attenuated total reflectance Fourier-transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopic analysis. The permeation behavior of TAK-242 from the prepared formulations was determined using Strat-M® transdermal diffusion membranes, and 3D cultured primary human-derived epidermal keratinocytes (EpiDermTM). Despite TAK-242's high molecular weight and hydrophobicity, it can permeate through reconstructed human epidermis from all formulations. The findings, reported for the first time in this study, emphasize the capabilities of the topical application of TAK-242 via these multiple innovative topical drug delivery formulation platforms.

Glycosylated Ang-(1-7) MasR Agonist Peptide Poly Lactic-co-Glycolic Acid (PLGA) Nanoparticles and Microparticles in Cognitive Impairment: Design, Particle Preparation, Physicochemical Characterization, and In Vitro Release.

Heart failure (HF) causes decreased brain perfusion in older adults, and increased brain and systemic inflammation increases the risk of cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Glycosylated Ang-(1-7) MasR agonists (PNA5) has shown improved bioavailability, stability, and brain penetration compared to Ang-(1-7) native peptide. Despite promising results and numerous potential applications, clinical applications of PNA5 glycopeptide are limited by its short half-life, and frequent injections are required to ensure adequate treatment for cognitive impairment. Therefore, sustained-release injectable formulations of PNA5 glycopeptide are needed to improve its bioavailability, protect the peptide from degradation, and provide sustained drug release over a prolonged time to reduce injection administration frequency. Two types of poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) were used in the synthesis to produce nanoparticles (≈0.769−0.35 µm) and microparticles (≈3.7−2.4 µm) loaded with PNA5 (ester and acid-end capped). Comprehensive physicochemical characterization including scanning electron microscopy, thermal analysis, molecular fingerprinting spectroscopy, particle sizing, drug loading, encapsulation efficiency, and in vitro drug release were conducted. The data shows that despite the differences in the size of the particles, sustained release of PNA5 was successfully achieved using PLGA R503H polymer with high drug loading (% DL) and high encapsulation efficiency (% EE) of >8% and >40%, respectively. While using the ester-end PLGA, NPs showed poor sustained release as after 72 h, nearly 100% of the peptide was released. Also, lower % EE and % DL values were observed (10.8 and 3.4, respectively). This is the first systematic and comprehensive study to report on the successful design, particle synthesis, physicochemical characterization, and in vitro glycopeptide drug release of PNA5 in PLGA nanoparticles and microparticles.

Design, Development, Physicochemical Characterization, and In Vitro Drug Release of Formoterol PEGylated PLGA Polymeric Nanoparticles.

Polymeric nanoparticles' drug delivery systems represent a promising platform for targeted controlled release since they are capable of improving the bioavailability and tissue localization of drugs compared to traditional means of administration. Investigation of key parameters of nanoparticle preparation and their impact on performance, such as size, drug loading, and sustained release, is critical to understanding the synthesis parameters surrounding a given nanoparticle formulation. This comprehensive and systematic study reports for the first time and focuses on the development and characterization of formoterol polymeric nanoparticles that have potential application in a variety of acute and chronic diseases. Nanoparticles were prepared by a variety of solvent emulsion methods with varying modifications to the polymer and emulsion system with the aim of increasing drug loading and tuning particle size for renal localization and drug delivery. Maximal drug loading was achieved by amine modification of polyethylene glycol (PEG) conjugated to the poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) backbone. The resulting formoterol PEGylated PLGA polymeric nanoparticles were successfully lyophilized without compromising size distribution by using either sucrose or trehalose as cryoprotectants. The physicochemical characteristics of the nanoparticles were examined comprehensively, including surface morphology, solid-state transitions, crystallinity, and residual water content. In vitro formoterol drug release characteristics from the PEGylated PLGA polymeric nanoparticles were also investigated as a function of both polymer and emulsion parameter selection, and release kinetics modeling was successfully applied.

Hydrophobic Chitosan Nanoparticles Loaded with Carvacrol against Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilms.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections have become more challenging to treat and eradicate due to their ability to form biofilms. This study aimed to produce hydrophobic nanoparticles by grafting 11-carbon and three-carbon alkyl chains to a chitosan polymer as a platform to carry and deliver carvacrol for improving its antibacterial and antibiofilm properties. Carvacrol-chitosan nanoparticles showed ζ potential values of 10.5-14.4 mV, a size of 140.3-166.6 nm, and an encapsulation efficiency of 25.1-68.8%. Hydrophobic nanoparticles reduced 46-53% of the biomass and viable cells (7-25%) within P. aeruginosa biofilms. Diffusion of nanoparticles through the bacterial biofilm showed a higher penetration of nanoparticles created with 11-carbon chain chitosan than those formulated with unmodified chitosan. The interaction of nanoparticles with a 50:50 w/w phospholipid mixture at the air-water interface was studied, and values suggested that viscoelasticity and fluidity properties were modified. The modified nanoparticles significantly reduced viable P. aeruginosa in biofilms (0.078-2.0 log CFU·cm-2) and swarming motility (40-60%). Furthermore, the formulated nanoparticles reduced the quorum sensing in Chromobacterium violaceum. This study revealed that modifying the chitosan polarity to synthesize more hydrophobic nanoparticles could be an effective treatment against P. aeruginosa biofilms to decrease its virulence and pathogenicity, mainly by increasing their ability to interact with the membrane phospholipids and penetrate preformed biofilms.

High antibacterial performance of hydrophobic chitosan-based nanoparticles loaded with Carvacrol.

Bacterial infections have become one of the top ten public health concerns worldwide. These problems are aggravated with the emergence of multi-drug resistant bacterial strains. Thus, it is necessary to adopt novel technological strategies, such as development of bionanomaterials to prevent the infection, and treat this kind of bacteria. At this regard, the chemical modification of chitosan (Cs), by the covalent attachment of a hydrocarbon chain (octanoic acid), was developed to obtain hydrophobic chitosan (HCs). Then, HCs was used to synthetize nanoparticles using the well-known ionotropic gelation approach, optimizing the parameters, such as the TPP/HCs ratio and pH solution to get stable nanoparticles. Then, carvacrol (CAR) was loaded into NPs (HCs-CAR NPs) using different concentrations of 25%, 50% and 75% (%w/w CAR/HCs). The physicochemical properties for HCs-CAR NPs prepared at 50% of CAR stood out from the rest, showing a spherical morphology, with a size of 200 nm, Z potential of 10.4 mV and encapsulation efficiency of 56.28%. These formulations were chosen to evaluate the antibacterial activity, using Gram-negative (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive bacterial model (Staphylococcus aureus). The HCs-CAR NPs showed great activity against both bacterial models, being more effective against Gram (+) strain (S. aureus), suggesting the potential application of these NPs as novel biomaterial to treat bacterial infection.

Inhalation Delivery for the Treatment and Prevention of COVID-19 Infection.

Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is caused by coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and has produced a global pandemic. As of 22 June 2021, 178 million people have been affected worldwide, and 3.87 million people have died from COVID-19. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States, COVID-19 virus is primarily transmitted between people through respiratory droplets and contact routes. Since the location of initial infection and disease progression is primarily through the lungs, the inhalation delivery of drugs directly to the lungs may be the most appropriate route of administration for treating COVID-19. This review article aims to present possible inhalation therapeutics and vaccines for the treatment of COVID-19 symptoms. This review covers the comparison between SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses such as SARS-CoV/MERS, inhalation therapeutics for the treatment of COVID-19 symptoms, and vaccines for preventing infection, as well as the current clinical status of inhaled therapeutics and vaccines.

Spray-Dried Inhalable Powder Formulations of Therapeutic Proteins and Peptides.

Respiratory diseases are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Innovations in biochemical engineering and understanding of the pathophysiology of respiratory diseases resulted in the development of many therapeutic proteins and peptide drugs with high specificity and potency. Currently, protein and peptide drugs are mostly administered by injections due to their large molecular size, poor oral absorption, and labile physicochemical properties. However, parenteral administration has several limitations such as frequent dosing due to the short half-life of protein and peptide in blood, pain on administration, sterility requirement, and poor patient compliance. Among various noninvasive routes of administrations, the pulmonary route has received a great deal of attention and is a better alternative to deliver protein and peptide drugs for treating respiratory diseases and systemic diseases. Among the various aerosol dosage forms, dry powder inhaler (DPI) systems appear to be promising for inhalation delivery of proteins and peptides due to their improved stability in solid state. This review focuses on the development of DPI formulations of protein and peptide drugs using advanced spray drying. An overview of the challenges in maintaining protein stability during the drying process and stabilizing excipients used in spray drying of proteins and peptide drugs is discussed. Finally, a summary of spray-dried DPI formulations of protein and peptide drugs, their characterization, various DPI devices used to deliver protein and peptide drugs, and current clinical status are discussed.

Inhalable Nanoparticles/Microparticles of an AMPK and Nrf2 Activator for Targeted Pulmonary Drug Delivery as Dry Powder Inhalers.

Metformin is an activator of the AMPK and Nrf2 pathways which are important in the pathology of several complex pulmonary diseases with unmet medical needs. Organic solution advanced spray drying in the absence of water in closed-mode was used to design and develop respirable dry powders. Following comprehensive characterization, the influence of physicochemical properties was correlated with performance as aerosols using inertial impaction and three different human dry powder inhaler (DPI) devices varying in device properties. In vitro cell assays were conducted to test safety in 2D human pulmonary cell lines and in 3D small airway epithelia comprising primary cells at the air-liquid interface (ALI). In addition, in vitro transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) was carried out. Metformin remained crystalline following advanced spray drying under these conditions. All SD powders consisted of nanoparticles/microparticles in the solid state. In vitro aerosol dispersion performance showed high aerosolization for all SD metformin powders with all DPI devices tested. High emitted dose for all powders with all three DPI devices was measured. Differences in other aerosol performance parameters and the interplay between the properties of different formulations produced at specific pump rates and the three different DPI devices were correlated with spray drying pump rate and device properties. Safety over a wide metformin dose range was also demonstrated in vitro. Aerosol delivery of metformin nanoparticles/microparticles has the potential to be a new "first-in-class" therapeutic for the treatment of a number of pulmonary diseases including pulmonary vascular diseases such as pulmonary hypertension.

Targeted Drug Delivery Via Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor for Sustained Release of Allyl Isothiocyanate.

In this study, allyl-isothiocyanate (AITC)-loaded Polylactic-Co-Glycolic Acid (PLGA) Nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared for targeting epithelial squamous carcinoma cells using a specific antibody targeting the Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF) receptor overexpressed on the cell membranes. AITC-loaded PLGA NPs showed more effective anticancer properties compared with free AITC, and their cytotoxicity was even more pronounced when the anti-EGFR antibody was covalently attached to the NPs surface. This targeting ability was additionally tested by co-culturing cervical HeLa cells, with very few EGFR on the membranes, and epithelial squamous carcinoma A431 cells, which largely overexpressed EFGR, being observed the specific localization of the antibody-functionalized AITC-loaded PLGA NPs solely in the latter types of cells, whereas non-functionalized NPs were distributed randomly in both cell types in much lesser extents. Thus, our findings support the development of drug delivery strategies that enhances the delivery of anti-cancer natural compounds to tumor tissue, in this case, by targeting specific tumor cell receptors with cell-specific ligands followed by tumor sensitization.

Hybrid folic acid-conjugated gold nanorods-loaded human serum albumin nanoparticles for simultaneous photothermal and chemotherapeutic therapy.

Hybrid nanoparticles containing both structural and functional nanocomponents might result in higher success and increased quality of life for patients suffering a disease such as cancer. In this study, we combine chemotherapy of conventional drug doxorubicin (Dox) with gold nanorods (AuNR) for photothermal therapy using multifunctional human serum albumin nanoparticles (HSA NP's) fabricated via desolvation technique with high efficiency. Folic acid (FA) was conjugated to HSA NP's trough an amidation via carbodiimide reaction for a more specific nanoplataform to HeLa cancer cells. The loading efficiency of Dox into AuNR loaded-HSA NP reached up to 2 µg Dox/mg HSA. The HSA-AuNR-Dox NP experienced photothermal heating varying laser potency (1, 0.5 and 0.2 W); reaching the bulk particle solution an increment of 16, 8 and 6 °C after 10 min of near-IR laser exposure respectively. When HeLa cells were treated with this multifunctional nanoplataform containing only AuNR, cancer cells experienced 96% cell viability without irradiation and 55% cell viability after just one irradiation session. When Dox is present in the nanoplataform, viability were 60% and 24% for non-irradiated and irradiated nanoplataforms, respectively. This study demonstrates that HSA-AuNR-Dox nanoparticles are suitable systems allowing a synergic chemo and phothothermal therapy.

Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanoparticles for sustained release of allyl isothiocyanate: characterization, in vitro release and biological activity.

The objective of this study is to establish the ability of entrap allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) into polymeric nanoparticles to extend its shelf life and enhance its antiproliferative properties. Natural compounds, such as AITC, have showed multi-targeting activity resulting in a wide-range spectrum of therapeutic properties in chronic and degenerative diseases, conversely with most current pharmaceutical drugs showing single targeting activity and often result in drug resistance after extended administration periods. Apparently, AITC-loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanoparticles (PLGA NPs) reduced AITC degradation and volatility and were able to extend AITC shelf life compared with free AITC (65% vs. 20% in 24 h, respectively). Cell viability and uptake of AITC-loaded nanoparticles were studied in vitro, showing that the protection and sustained release of AITC from polymeric NPs involved a larger toxicity of tumoral cells. These nanoparticles could be used as protective systems for enhancing a biological activity.