Song Chuanhui, Zhang Xiaoxuan, Lu Minhui, Zhao Yuanjin
Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Institute of Translational Medicine, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210002, China.
State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China.
Research (Wash D C). 2023 Apr 18;6:0119. doi: 10.34133/research.0119. eCollection 2023.
Periodontal lesions are common and frustrating diseases that impact life quality. Efforts in this aspect aim at developing local drug delivery systems with better efficacy and less toxicity. Herein, inspired by the sting separation behavior of bees, we conduct novel reactive oxygen species (ROS)-responsive detachable microneedles (MNs) that carry antibiotic metronidazole (Met) for controllable periodontal drug delivery and periodontitis treatment. Benefiting from the needle-base separation ability, such MNs can penetrate through the healthy gingival to reach the gingival sulcus's bottom while offering minimal impact to oral function. Besides, as the drug-encapsulated cores were protected by poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) shells in MNs, the surrounding normal gingival tissue is not affected by Met, resulting in excellent local biosafety. Additionally, with the ROS-responsive PLGA-thioketal-polyethylene glycol MN tips, they can be unlocked to release Met directly around the pathogen under the high ROS in the periodontitis sulcus, bringing about improved therapeutic effects. Based on these characteristics, the proposed bioinspired MNs show good therapeutic results in treating a rat model with periodontitis, implying their potential in periodontal disease.
牙周病变是常见且令人困扰的疾病，会影响生活质量。这方面的努力旨在开发疗效更好、毒性更小的局部给药系统。在此，受蜜蜂蛰刺分离行为的启发，我们制备了新型的活性氧（ROS）响应型可分离微针（MNs），其携带抗生素甲硝唑（Met）用于可控的牙周药物递送和牙周炎治疗。得益于针基分离能力，此类微针能够穿透健康牙龈到达龈沟底部，同时对口腔功能的影响最小。此外，由于药物包封的核心在微针中受到聚乳酸 - 乙醇酸共聚物（PLGA）壳的保护，周围正常牙龈组织不受甲硝唑影响，从而具有出色的局部生物安全性。此外，通过ROS响应型PLGA - 硫酮 - 聚乙二醇微针尖端，它们可以在牙周炎龈沟中高ROS的作用下解锁，直接在病原体周围释放甲硝唑，从而提高治疗效果。基于这些特性，所提出的仿生微针在治疗大鼠牙周炎模型中显示出良好的治疗效果，暗示了其在牙周疾病治疗中的潜力。
