Table 3. Examples of targeted drug delivery of nanomedicines for OA treatment.
| NP | Cargo | Target | OA model | Major finding | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DWRVIIPPRPSA-modified polymeric micelles | DEX | Articular cartilage | MIA mice | Inhibit the degradation of COLII, superior cartilage targeting property, prolonged retention time | 132 |
| Polymeric micelles | rAAV Sox9 | Chondrocytes | Human chondrocytes | Sustained Sox9 expression, increased COLII deposition | 133 |
| Polyplex | IL-1Rα mRNA | IL-1β in cartilage and synovium | MIA rats | Less loss of cartilage matrix, reduced pain, cartilage loss, and inflammation | 134 |
| Polyplex | Periostin-siRNA | Chondrocytes | DMM mice | Reduce OARSI score and subchondral bone sclerosis | 135 |
| PEG-PAMAM dendrimer | Kartogenin | MSCs | Papain rats | Increased chondrogenic markers, distinct chondrogenic properties in treated BMSCs | 136 |
| PLGA-based PNPs | p66shc siRNA | Chondrocytes | MIA rats | Attenuated ROS, inhibited cartilage damage and inflammation, reduced pain | 137 |
| PLGA-based PNPs | p47phox siRNA | Chondrocytes | MIA rats | Attenuated ROS, inhibited cartilage damage and inflammation, reduced pain | 138 |
| Hemoglobin-PNPs | Notch-siRNA ssDNA |
Pro-inflammatory macrophage | Papain mice Human blood |
Reduced pro-inflammatory cytokines and cartilage erosion | 139 |
| Multi-arm Avidin | DEX | Articular cartilage | Bovine cartilage explant | Full penetration of cartilage, increased retention in vivo, sustained drug release | 140 |
| Chondrocyte affinity peptide-exosomes | CRISPR/Cas9 plasmid | Chondrocytes | DMM rats | Decreased COLII degradation and OARSI score, improved penetration and retention | 141 |
| Exosomes | miR-9-5p | MSCs | ACLT rats | Decreased inflammatory factors, improved Mankin score and favoured joint histology | 142 |
Note: ACLT: anterior cruciate ligament transection; AuNP: gold NP; BMSC: bone marrow-derived MSC; COLII: type II collagen; CRISPR/Cas9: clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9; DEX: dexamethasone; DMM: destabilisation of the medial meniscus; IL-1Rα: interleukin-1 receptor antagonist; IL-1β: interleukin-1β; MIA: monosodium iodoacetate; MSC: mesenchymal stem cell; NP: nanoparticle; OA: osteoarthritis; OARSI: osteoarthritis research society international; PAMAM: polyamidoamine; PEG: poly(ethylene glycol); PLGA: poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid); PNP: polymer-based nanoparticle; rAAV: recombinant adeno-associated viral; ROS: reactive oxygen species; siRNA: small interfering RNA; Sox9: SRY-box transcription factor 9; ssDNA: single-stranded DNA.