Table 3.

Selected relevant pre-clinical studies based on recent LNPs for the diagnosis and treatment of AD

Loaded molecule	Lipid matrix	Surface modifications	Dose	Admin. route	In vitro/In vivo model	Results	Refs
PE	Lecithin Stearic acid Cholesterol	–	50 mg/kg	v.o	AlCl 3-induced Wistar rats	PE shows a protective effect in the AD animal model NPs improve the PE effectiveness in novel object recognition test, increase of biomarkers of antioxidant activity, lipid peroxidation reduction, and neurofibrillary tangles and the senile plaques reduction	Almuhayawi et al. [57]
α-bisabolol	Cholesterol	–	5–10 μg/ml	incubation	Aβ25–35 Neuro-2a cells	NPs significantly suppress the production of free radicals, reduce β-secretase, caspase-3, cholinesterase activities and expression of Bax, and induce expression of Bcl-2 proteins	Sathya et al. [164]
Quercetin	Cetyl palmitate miglyol-812	Transferrin	10–30 µM	Incubation	hCMEC/D3 cells	Quercetin-NPs are not toxic for hCMEC/D3 cells and permeate more the BBB than free drug. Moreover, NPs inhibit fibril formation of Aβ peptide	Pinheiro et al. [161]
EPO	GMS	–	1250–2500 IU/Kg	i.p	Aβ42-induced Wistar rats	EPO-NPs significantly restore memory in treated rats compared to those treated with free EPO EPO-NPs reduce the oxidative stress, ADP/ATP ratio, and Aβ plaque deposition in the hippocampus more effectively than the free EPO	Dara et al. [165]
Curcumin	Caprylic/capric triglycerides, sorbitan monostearate	PCL	1–10 mg/kg	i.c.v	Aβ42-induced Swiss Albino mice	Curcumin-NPs display significant neuroprotection against Aβ42-induced behavioral and neurochemical changes in the AD-induced mice model	Giacomedi et al. [158]
α-bisabolol	Cholesterol	–	5–10 μg/ml	Incubation	Aβ25–35 Neuro-2a cells	α-bisabolol-NPs protect the Neuro-2a cells from Aβ induced neurotoxicity and inhibited Aβ aggregation	Sathya et al. [163]

EPO, Erythropoietin; GMS, Glycerin monostearate; hCMEC/D3 cells, Immortalized human cerebral microvascular endothelial cells; PCL, poly(ɛ-caprolactone); PE, pomegranate extract