Hyaluronic Acid Nanoporous Microparticles with Long In Vivo Joint Residence Time and Sustained Release

Abstract

A simple approach is reported to engineer biodegradable and biocompatible nanoporous hyaluronic acid particles (NPHAs) with a characteristic sponge-like morphology and uniform size. These NPHAs can be synthesized using the concomitant cross-linking of hyaluronic acid and the cross-linking agent precipitation. The nanoporous architecture of NPHAs prevents the rapid enzymatic degradation of hyaluronic acid and controls the erosion of microparticles in physiological conditions. Once injected into an intra-articular body cavity of healthy mice, these NPHAs reside at the point-of-delivery for an extended time period, exhibiting a sustained release of hyaluronic acid. In addition, in vivo studies ..