Trehalose-Conjugated, Catechin-Loaded Polylactide Nanoparticles for Improved Neuroprotection against Intracellular Polyglutamine Aggregates

Intracellular/extracellular protein aggregation is linked to a variety of neurodegenerative diseases. Current research focuses on identifying antiamyloidogenic small molecules to inhibit such protein aggregation and associated cytotoxicity. We have recently demonstrated that transforming these antiamyloidogenic small molecules into nanoparticle forms can greatly improve their performance, and biocompatible/biodegradable formulation of such nanoparticles is critical for therapeutic applications. Here, we report polylactide (PL)-based biodegradable nanoparticles for improved neuroprotection against polyglutamine (polyQ) aggregation that is responsible for Huntington's disease. PL is terminated with an antiamyloidogenic trehalose molecule or the neurotransmitter dopamine, and the resultant nanoparticle is loaded with the antiamyloidogenic catechin molecule. The self-assembled nanoparticle is ∼200 nm in size and enters into the neuronal cell, inhibits polyQ aggregation, lowers oxidative stress, and enhances cell proliferation against polyQ aggregates. This biodegradable polymer can be used in nanoformulation of other reported antiamyloidogenic molecules for testing various animal models of neurodegenerative diseases.