Optimizing the Preparation of Silk Fibroin Nanoparticles and Their Loading with Polyphenols: Towards a More Efficient Anti-Inflammatory Effect on Macrophages

Abstract

Silk fibroin nanoparticles (SFN) have become a promising tool in drug delivery systems due to their physicochemical characteristics. SFN have shown their outstanding properties as an active vehicle for polyphenols, enhancing their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects on macrophages; therefore, it becomes necessary to have an easy, reproducible and scalable production method. In order to improve the production of nanoparticles, we performed direct precipitation of non-dialyzed silk fibroin solutions and evaluated the reproducibility of the method using dynamic light scattering. We also studied the loading efficiency of three different natural polyphenols using propylene glycol as a solvent. The loaded nanoparticles were fully characterized and used to treat human macrophage cells to assess the anti-inflammatory activity of these nanoparticles. The measured hydrodynamic characteristics of the SFN and the overall yield of the process showed that the new preparation method is highly reproducible and repeatable. Thus, we not only present a new scalable method to prepare silk nanoparticles but also how to improve the loading of natural polyphenolic compounds to the SFN, as well as the important anti-inflammatory effects of these loaded nanoparticles in a cell model of human macrophage cells.

Polysaccharide-Based Micro/Nanomotors for Active Ingredient Delivery in Food

“…The polyphenolic compound curcumin played a major role, and the studies mentioned above all demonstrated a significant dose dependence. It has been reported that curcumin–silk nanocomposites significantly reduce TNF-α and IL-6 levels, indicating that the combination of novel nanocomposite carriers and polyphenols exhibits superior anti-inflammatory effects . The results of this study showed that all experimental doses (20–80 μg mL –1 ) of PMNMs-Cur effectively inhibited the production of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 in LPS-induced RAW264.7 macrophages.…”

“…It has been reported that curcumin−silk nanocomposites significantly reduce TNF-α and IL-6 levels, indicating that the combination of novel nanocomposite carriers and polyphenols exhibits superior anti-inflammatory effects. 75 The results of this study showed that all experimental doses (20−80 μg mL −1 ) of PMNMs-Cur effectively inhibited the production of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 in LPS-induced RAW264.7 macrophages. PMNMs-Cur played an anti-inflammatory role, and the above studies showed a significant dose dependency.…”

Silk Fibroin Nanoparticles (SFNs) for nanoencapsulation of bioactive molecules

“…Previous works proved the utility of SFNs as drug carriers due to their optimal physicochemical properties and biosafety. For instance, several studies have described that SFN enhances polyphenol bioavailability with a low cytotoxic effect, highlighting their potential use as therapeutics in different diseases such as cancer or infl ammatory diseases [5,9,15,20,29,30].…”

“…Nanoencapsulation has a number of interesting advantages in different domains due to its potential for stabilization and delivery of delicate and precious bioactive molecules. Thus, bioactive compounds encapsulated in a biopolymer can be effi ciently protected from harmful environmental agents like light, oxygen, or water [9,12]. In Nanomedicine, advances in targeted drug delivery systems using nanoparticles improve the precision and effectiveness of cancer treatments and the development of nanoscale imaging agents for earlier and more accurate disease diagnosis [31].…”

“…Silk Fibroin Nanoparticles (SFNs) constitute a highly customizable biomaterial with effective potential in biomedical applications. This biopolymer is used in medicine for its capacity to act as a reversible carrier of bioactive molecules [7][8][9]. In order to stabilize and protect delicate and precious bioactive compounds, it is benefi cial to encapsulate them prior to application.…”