Excessive generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) resulting in
oxidative stress and plays a crucial role in the progression of
inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which may in turn serve as a potential
therapeutic target. To date, efforts on ROS scavenging systems have been
focused predominantly on metal oxide nanoenzymes and polyphenol-based
nanomaterials. Polyphenols, as a natural plant extract, have attracted
increasing interests and showed great antioxidant properties in IBD
therapy. The unique catechol groups in polyphenols allowing them to
interact with biomolecules, such as proteins and nucleic acids.
Additionally, the strong metal ion chelating ability of catechol
enriched the structure and function of nanomaterials. This
characteristic not only improves the physicochemical properties of
polyphenols based nano-carriers but also enables innovative designs of
multifunctional drug delivery systems (DDSs). To date, research on
polyphenol-based DDSs has increased, including epigallocatechin gallate
(EGCG), curcumin (CUR), resveratrol, tannic acid (TA), rosmarinic acid
(RA) and dopamine (DA). In this review, we mainly focus on the design
and application of natural polyphenol based nanomaterials in IBD,
providing a comprehensive discussion on the use of polyphenols in DDSs.
We will also discuss the potential challenges in innovative drug
delivery strategies, including their impact on the physical and chemical
properties of drug delivery systems.