International Journal of Nanomedicine (Feb 2023)
Topical Delivery of ROS-Responsive Methotrexate Prodrug Nanoassemblies by a Dissolvable Microneedle Patch for Psoriasis Therapy
Abstract
Yong Zhou,1,* Lei Yang,1,* Yifu Lyu,1,* Di Wu,1 Ying Zhu,1 Jingjing Li,1 Dabo Jiang,1 Xiaofei Xin,1 Lifang Yin1– 4 1Department of Pharmaceutics, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China; 2NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Pharmaceutical Preparations and Excipients, China, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China; 3Key Laboratory of Drug Quality Control and Pharmacovigilance, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China; 4State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicine, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Lifang Yin; Xiaofei Xin, Department of Pharmaceutics, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 (025)83271018, Email [email protected]; [email protected]: Oxidative stress, nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) and adenosine signaling are factors associated with psoriatic inflammation. Topical delivery of methotrexate (MTX) has become an option to overcome the side effects caused by systemic therapy in psoriasis, leading to the suppression of NF-κB activation through boosting adenosine release. However, thickened psoriatic skin is the primary restriction against local drug delivery.Methods: In this study, a ROS responsive MTX prodrug (MTX-TK-HA) was synthesized with the feature of CD44 mediated active targeting to hyperproliferative keratinocytes. MTX prodrug and PLA-mPEG were formulated by nano-precipitation method to develop the MTX-TK-HA/PLA-mPEG nanoassemblies. To achieve painless transdermal delivery, a dissolving microneedle was applied for direct loading of these nanoassemblies by micromolding technique. The particle size, zeta potential, ROS-responsiveness, permeability, and mechanical strength of nanoassemblies and microneedle arrays were determined, respectively. Then, MTT assay, immunoblot analysis, ELISA assay, flow cytometry, and histological staining were utilized to thoroughly evaluate the efficacy of nanoassemblies-loaded microneedles in an imiquimod-induced psoriatic mouse model.Results: Nanoassemblies-loaded microneedle arrays were capable of significantly penetrating imiquimod-induced psoriatic epidermis in mice. The efficient topical delivery of these nanoassemblies was achieved by potent mechanical strength and hyaluronic acid as the dissolvable matrix for microneedle arrays. CD44-mediated endocytosis enabled the intracellular uptake of nanoassemblies in keratinocytes, and methotrexate was released from MTX-TK-HA with ROS stimuli, followed by suppressing the proliferation of epidermal cells via NF-κB pathway blockade.Conclusion: In a psoriatic mouse model, nanoassemblies loaded microneedle arrays relieve inflammatory skin disorders via regulation of adenosine and NF-κB signaling. Our study offered a rational design for the transdermal delivery of hydrophobic agents and defined an effective therapeutic option for psoriasis treatment.Keywords: psoriasis, ROS-responsiveness, microneedle, topical delivery, methotrexate
