Therapeutic Properties of PDMS Nanoparticles: A Promising New Drug Delivery Vehicle against Inflammatory Conditions

Background: Over the last few decades, there has been a stupendous change in the area of drug delivery using particulate delivery systems, with increasing focus on nanoparticles in recent times. Nanoparticles help to improve and alter the pharmacodynamic properties and pharmacokinetics of various types of drug molecules. These features help to protect the drug entity in the systemic circulation, access of the drug to the chosen sites, and to deliver the drug in a controlled and sustained rate at the site of action. Objective: Nanoparticle based targeted delivery of anti-inflammatory drugs/signal modulatory agents to the cytoplasm or nuclei of the targeted cell can significantly enhance the precision and efficacy of intended therapeutic activity. To this end, we report ligand free, enhanced intra-nuclear delivery model of anti-inflammatory therapeutics via PDMS nanoparticles. Methods: PDMS nanoparticles were prepared by sacrificial silica template-based approach and details of their characterization for suitability as a nanoparticle-based delivery material are detailed herein. Results: Biological evaluation for compatibility was carried out and the results showed that the PDMS nanoparticle has no toxicity on RAW 264.7 cells in the concentration range of 10, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100 and 120 μg/mL in culture. Biocompatibility and absence of toxicity were determined by morphological examination and cell viability assays. Drug loading and release kinetics were carried out with the anti-inflammatory drug Diclofenac. Conclusion: In this paper, we clearly demonstrate the various aspects of nanoparticle articulation, characterization, effect of their characteristics and their applications as a non-toxic drug delivery molecule for its potential applications in therapeutic delivery of drugs for sustained release.