Bone-targeted polymeric nanoparticles as alendronate carriers for potential osteoporosis treatment
Chunlan Jing, Shen-Mao Chen, Sehajdev Singh Bhatia, Bowen Li, Hongze Liang, Chaozong Liu, Zhenjiang Liang, Junying Liu, Haiyan Li, Ziyu Liu, Hui Tan, Lingling Zhao
Abstract
Bone-targeted polymeric nanoparticles for alendronate delivery based on Poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) conjugated chitosan (CS-PLGA) and alendronate conjugated PLGA (Alen-PLGA) are fabricated and their superior performances are evaluated. The nanoparticles exhibited sustained Alen release without obvious burst release and good cytocompatibility against MC3T3 cells. Alen-modified nanoparticles demonstrated a high affinity to hydroxyapatite, which is the main mineral component of bone, indicating their feasibility for bone-targeted delivery. In addition, unlike nanoparticles without Alen, Alen-modified nanoparticles were preferentially taken up by MC3T3 cells, compared to HDF cells, revealing their specific uptake for osteoblast-like cells. Thus, the Alen-modified nanoparticles can potentially be developed as bone-targeted carriers for osteoporosis treatment.