Development and evaluation of PLA-coated co-micellar nanosystem of Resveratrol for the intra-articular treatment of arthritis

Arthritis is a chronic degenerative joint disease decreasing the patient's quality of life. Mixed micellar system (MM) was exploited as a nanotechnology platform suitable for the encapsulation of the water-insoluble drug, Resveratrol (RES). MM were prepared using different ratios of poloxamer 188 (P188) and poloxamer 407 (P407), and then subjected to in-vitro evaluation. The selected MM (MM3) composed of P188: P407 in a ratio of 2:1 attained the most compromised properties (Particle size = 52.97 ± 4.52 nm, Encapsulation Efficiency = 76.20 ± 4.51 and Release efficiency = 76.26 ± 6.25), and was coated with poly-lactic acid (PLA). TEM photographs of PLA-coated MM3 showed a polymeric layer surrounding the nanoparticles. Rats with induced arthritis were used to study the curative effect of intra-articularly (IA)-injected MM3, PLA-coated MM3 as well as the drug suspension. All the treated groups showed a significant therapeutic improvement in arthritis proved by measuring rats knee diameter as well as the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α). The treatment effectiveness was in the following order: PLA-coated MM3 ˃ MM3 ˃ drug suspension, (p 0.05). Histological study showed the recovery of the joints and synovial structure by IA administration of the drug-loaded micellar nanosystems, and the PLA-coated MM attained the best effect. This study proves the promising curative effect of the designed nanotechnology-based drug carrier.