Therapeutic Textiles Functionalized with Keratin-Based Particles Encapsulating Terbinafine for the Treatment of Onychomycosis

Abstract

Onychomycosis is the most common nail fungal infection worldwide. There are several therapy options available for onychomycosis, such as oral antifungals, topicals, and physical treatments. Terbinafine is in the frontline for the treatment of onychomycosis; however, several adverse effects are associated to its oral administration. In this work, innovative keratin-based carriers encapsulating terbinafine were designed to overcome the drawbacks related to the use this drug. Therapeutic textiles functionalized with keratin-based particles (100% keratin; 80% keratin/20% keratin-PEG) encapsulating terbinafine were developed. The controlled release of terbinafine from the functionalized textiles was evaluated against different mimetic biologic solutions (PBS buffer—pH = 7.4, micellar solution and acidic sweat solution—pH = 4.3). The modification of keratin with polyethylene glycol (PEG) moieties favored the release of terbinafine at the end of 48 h for all the solution conditions. When the activity of functionalized textiles was tested against Trichophyton rubrum, a differentiated inhibition was observed. Textiles functionalized with 80% keratin/20% keratin-PEG encapsulating terbinafine showed a 2-fold inhibition halo compared with the textiles containing 100% keratin-encapsulating terbinafine. No activity was observed for the textiles functionalized with keratin-based particles without terbinafine. The systems herein developed revealed therapeutic potential towards nail fungal infections, taking advantage of keratin-based particles affinity to keratin structures and of the keratinase activity of T. rubrum.

Contemporary Techniques and Potential Transungual Drug Delivery Nanosystems for The Treatment of Onychomycosis

“…In this context, the use of Eudragit RSPO was preferred to ethyl cellulose which resulted in repeatedly small particles with reasonably low polydispersity index when compared to ethyl cellulose [82]. Terbinafine HCl was also entrapped in PEGylated-keratin particles forming water channels, favoring drug diffusion and release over non-PEGylated keratin particles [85]. Antifungal agents were also formulated as nanosuspension and nanomicelles as nanosystems for their delivery to treat onychomycosis.…”

Development and Evaluation of Microencapsulated Oregano Essential Oil as an Alternative Treatment for Candida albicans Infections

“…They are also relatively easy to prepare and control in terms of particle size, which is crucial for ensuring efficient and targeted drug delivery. , In this sense, several types of protein can be used for fabricating microcapsules, such as keratin . Keratin is a natural protein found in different sources such as wool, human hair, nails, feathers and horns or hooves. , This compound is a promising option for building drug carriers due to its biodegradability, biocompatibility, absorbability, nonimmunogenicity and reduction sensitivity. , Moreover, due to a cysteine-rich structure and the presence of several functional groups, such as amid, carboxyl or sulfhydryl, it can be easily modified with biomolecules to improve its solubility, stability and can be applied in a wide range of biomedical and biotechnological applications . In this context, keratin-based drug carriers have been explored, including micro- or nanoparticles, nanogels or films …”