UB hydrogel delivers OA drugs in joints for weeks — SkimNews
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- University at Buffalo scientists developed an injectable hydrogel that stays inside arthritic joints for several weeks after a single minimally invasive injection, gradually releasing drug-loaded nanocarriers.
- The formulation transitions from liquid to a lubricious semisolid at body temperature, creating both a sustained-release drug reservoir and a viscosupplement that improves joint lubrication.
- The platform pairs a biocompatible polymer matrix with nanocarriers designed to carry high concentrations of poorly soluble drugs, targeting a key hurdle in delivering hydrophobic disease-modifying compounds.
- Researchers validated the approach using a SIRT6 activator, and say the same system can be adapted to carry other hydrophobic disease-modifying candidates.
- The materials chosen have prior regulatory acceptance, a feature intended to make eventual clinical translation more practical.
- Beyond knee osteoarthritis, the platform could be applied to post-traumatic OA, intervertebral disc degeneration, rotator cuff degeneration, and localized delivery of other hydrophobic drug candidates.
Why it matters: For osteoarthritis patients who currently need repeated joint injections for short-lived symptom relief, a single weekly-residing drug depot could cut procedure burden while enabling disease-modifying therapy — and the use of materials with prior regulatory acceptance may shorten the path to clinical trials.
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