In vivo retention of peptide-functionalized PEG-4MAL
nano-composite microgels. A) Rats received MMT surgery in the left joint, and 21
days after OA induction, were injected bilaterally with Cy7, WYR- or
HAP-1-functionalized PEG-4MAL microgels. B) IVIS images of healthy and OA rat
knees show that free Cy7 dye is cleared from the joints faster that
nano-composite microgels. C) Radiant efficiency of the different formulations as
a function on time (Mean ± SD, n=9). D) Half-life time obtained from
one-phase exponential decay curve fit shows that nano-composite PEG-4MAL
microgels present a significantly higher retention time compared to free dye
(Mean ± SD, n=9, *p<0.05 compared to dye in MMT joints,
#p<0.05 compared to dye in healthy joints).