Silk Nanocarrier with Tunable Size to Improve Transdermal Capacity for Hydrophilic and Hydrophobic Drugs

Abstract

Transdermal drug delivery is an attractive option for multiple disease therapies as it reduces adverse reactions and improves patient compliance. Water-dispersible β-sheet rich silk nanofiber carriers have hydrophobic properties that benefit transdermal delivery but still show inferior transdermal capacities. Thus, hydrophobic silk nanofibers were fabricated to fine-tune their size and endow them with desirable transdermal delivery capacities. Silk nanocarrier length was shortened from 2000 nm to approximately 40 nm after ultrasonic treatment. In vitro human skin and in vivo animal studies revealed different transdermal behaviors for silk nanocarriers at different nanosizes. Silk nanocarriers passed slowly through the corneum without destroying the corneum structure. Improved transdermal capacity was achieved for smaller size carriers. Both hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs could be loaded onto silk nanocarriers, suggesting a promising future for different disease therapies. No cytotoxicity and skin irritation were identified for silk nanocarriers, which strengthened their superiority as transdermal carriers. Therefore, silk nanocarriers <100 nm may promote the percutaneous absorption of active cargos for disease therapy and cosmetic applications.

Sustainable Silk-Based Particulate Systems for the Controlled Release of Pharmaceuticals and Bioactive Agents in Wound Healing and Skin Regeneration

“…Silk nanofiber size was gradually reduced from 2000 to <100 nm and investigated for their capacity to permeate through the skin. Particles were fabricated first using a concentration-dilution protocol [ 132 ], where SF solution was concentrated while being heated over the course of 24 h to form particles, then diluted and heated until a gel was formed. An ultrasonic treatment was then employed between 100–650 W for 5–30 min to prepare silk nanoparticles of different sizes by altering the ultrasonic intensity and time.…”

Advances in Natural Polymer‐Based Transdermal Drug Delivery Systems for Tumor Therapy

“…Reproduced with permission. [71] Copyright 2023, American Chemical Society. diclofenac, and vitamin B12 drugs based on chitosan and phospholipid nanofibers (Figure 10).…”

“…It was found that improved transdermal capacity was achieved for smaller size carriers ( Figure ). [ 71 ] Similarly, in comparing the NPTDD efficiency of different sizes of curcumin nanocrystals mediated by HA MN, Miao et al. found that smaller particle sizes were more conducive to their entry into the deeper layers of the skin.…”

Biomimetic Vascular Grafts with Circumferentially and Axially Oriented Microporous Structures for Native Blood Vessel Regeneration

“…The BSNs have been used to load hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs and ingredients to achieve different bioactivity such as angiogenic property and anti-inflammatory capacity. [58][59][60] The drug-loaded BSNs were also treated with electrical fields to develop bioactive hydrogels with anisotropic structures for nerve regeneration. [21] It is possible to load anticoagulant molecules such as heparin and aspirin on the BSNs and then prepare the vascular grafts with anticoagulant capacity through the same fabrication strategy.…”