ao6b00423_si_001.pdf (2.45 MB)
Polymer Nanoparticle Engineering for Podocyte Repair: From in Vitro Models to New Nanotherapeutics in Kidney Diseases
journal contribution
posted on 2017-02-20, 12:51 authored by Claudio Colombo, Min Li, Shojiro Watanabe, Piergiorgio Messa, Alberto Edefonti, Giovanni Montini, Davide Moscatelli, Maria Pia Rastaldi, Francesco CellesiSpecific therapeutic
targeting of kidney podocytes, the highly
differentiated ramified glomerular cells involved in the onset and/or
progression of proteinuric diseases, could become the optimal strategy
for preventing chronic kidney disease. With this aim, we developed
a library of engineered polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) of tuneable
size and surface properties and evaluated their interaction with podocytes.
NP cytotoxicity, uptake, and cytoskeletal effects on podocytes were
first assessed. On the basis of these data, nanodelivery of dexamethasone
loaded into selected biocompatible NPs was successful in repairing
damaged podocytes. Finally, a three-dimensional in vitro system of
co-culture of endothelial cells and podocytes was exploited as a new
tool for mimicking the mechanisms of NP interaction with glomerular
cells and the repair of the kidney filtration barrier.