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A growing body of evidence shows the protective role
of insulin in Alzheimer's disease (AD). A nanogel
system (NG) to deliver insulin to the brain, as a
tool for the development of a new therapy for
Alzheimer's Disease (AD), is designed and
synthetized.
A carboxyl-functionalized poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone)
nanogel system produced by ionizing radiation is
chosen as substrate for the covalent attachment of
insulin or fluorescent molecules relevant for its
characterization. Biocompatibility and
hemocompatibility of the naked carrier is
demonstrated.
The insulin conjugated to the NG (NG-In) is
protected by protease degradation and able to bind
to insulin receptor (IR), as demonstrated by
immunofluorescence measurements showing
colocalization of NG-InFITC with IR. Moreover, after
binding to the receptor, NG-In is able to trigger
insulin signaling via AKT activation.
Neuroprotection of NG-In against dysfunction induced
by amyloid β (Aβ), a peptide mainly involved in AD,
is verified.
Finally, the potential of NG-In to be efficiently
transported across the Blood Brain Barrier (BBB) is
demonstrated. All together these results indicate
that the synthesized NG-In is a suitable vehicle
system for insulin deliver in biomedicine and a very
promising tool to develop new therapies for
neurodegenerative diseases.
Fore more information
Biomaterials
Picone P, Ditta LA, Sabatino MA, Militello V, San
Biagio PL, Di Giacinto ML, Cristaldi L, Nuzzo D,
Dispenza C, Giacomazza D, Di Carlo M.
Ionizing radiation-engineered nanogels as insulin
nanocarriers for the development of a new strategy
for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
doi:10.1016/j.biomaterials
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