Composite Separable Microneedles for Transdermal Delivery and Controlled Release of Salmon Calcitonin for Osteoporosis Therapy

Abstract

A composite separable microneedles (MNs) system consisting of silk fibroin (SF) needle tips and hyaluronic acid (HA) base is developed for transdermal delivery of salmon calcitonin (sCT) for therapy of osteoporosis. Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) is used to modulate the conformation structure of SF to achieve controllable sustained release of sCT. The prepared MNs can effectively penetrate the skin stratum corneum. After application to the skin, the HA base is dissolved within 2 min, allowing these SF drug depots to be implanted into the skin for controllable sustained release of sCT. The release kinetics of sCT can be controlled by regulating the conformation of SF with PEG and the interaction between sCT peptide and SF proteins. Compared with traditional needle injection, delivery of sCT using optimized HA-PEG/SF MNs shows better trabecular bone repair for ovariectomized-induced osteoporosis in mice. The proposed MNs system provides a new noninjection strategy for therapy of osteoporosis.

Dissolving Hyaluronic Acid-Based Microneedles to Transdermally Deliver Eugenol Combined with Photothermal Therapy for Acne Vulgaris Treatment

“…Obviously, equally spaced channels can be seen in the skin cross section, and the insertion depth of the E@P-EO-HA MNs is about 170 μm (Figure D). Due to the inherent elastic characteristics of the skin, the insertion depth of microneedles is smaller than their actual height but still sufficient to penetrate the stratum corneum (15–20 μm) . It can be concluded that E@P-EO-HA MNs possess enough mechanical strength to penetrate the stratum corneum of the skin and achieve transdermal drug delivery.…”

Microneedle systems: cell, exosome, and nucleic acid based strategies

“…As the sericin matrix swells and gradually degrades, the loaded drug is released at a constant rate, providing sustained therapeutic effects. 38…”

“…As the sericin matrix swells and gradually degrades, the loaded drug is released at a constant rate, providing sustained therapeutic effects. 38 2.3.5 Hydrogel MN. Hydrogel materials have gained significant attention in biomedical engineering due to their hydrophilicity, high biocompatibility, and ability to protect the skin barrier.…”

“…Silk fibroin (SF); poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG); salmon calcitonin (sCT). Reprinted with permission from American Chemical Society, 38 Copyright 2023.…”

Drug Delivery and Therapy Strategies for Osteoporosis Intervention

“…Microneedles are the most widely used form of drug delivery by the transdermal route, with high patient compliance and no specialized knowledge required [ 71 ]. Li et al [ 72 ] prepared a microneedle system consisting of silk fibroin needle tips and hyaluronic acid matrix for transdermal delivery of salmon calcitonin. The developed microneedles showed significant trabecular repair ability, and the therapeutic effect on OVX mice was better than that of traditional injections.…”