title: Nanodrugs to target articular cartilage: An emerging platform for osteoarthritis therapy.
abstract: Cartilage undergoes drastic structural changes during the development of osteoarthritis and cannot heal itself due to a defective chondrocyte response. Thus, much effort has been invested in the development of disease modifying drugs able to block key mediators within the cartilage matrix and biochemical pathways inside chondrocytes. However, the delivery of therapeutic agents into cartilage is ineffective. This has led to the use of cartilage-targeted nanodrugs to accumulate therapeutic agents into specific cartilage sub-compartments. This review will describe the nanodrugs targeted to specific components of cartilage matrix to generate drug reservoirs within the cartilage. The nanodrugs used as chondrocyte-specific gene delivery systems are also described. Although the use of cartilage-targeted nanodrugs in osteoarthritis is still in its infancy, these studies lay the foundation for the development of novel approaches for preventing the progression of cartilage breakdown and improving the quality of life of patients with osteoarthritis.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Osteoarthritis is a degeneration of joint cartilage, which affects a large number of aging people. Current therapy for disease modification is often suboptimal. Recent research in nanomedicine has led to the design and use of nanodrugs with the aim to help reverse the disease process. In this comprehensive review, the authors described and discussed various nanodrugs in the hope that newer drugs could be discovered in the future.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy; Inflammatory and Infectious Disease Center, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA. Electronic address: massimo.bottini@uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bottini
authors.affiliation: Division of Molecular Toxicology, Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Kunal
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bhattacharya
authors.affiliation: Division of Molecular Toxicology, Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Bengt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fadeel
authors.affiliation: Department of Biopathology and Imaging Diagnostics, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Magrini
authors.affiliation: Division of Cellular Biology, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology, La Jolla, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Nunzio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bottini
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Nicola
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rosato
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D019902:Chondrocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000737:chemistry*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D050997:Nanomedicine / Q000379:methods; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000008:administration & dosage*
chemical_list: D004337:Drug Carriers; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations
keywords: Biological identity; Cartilage; Nanodrugs; Osteoarthritis; Targeting agents; Therapeutic index