Cationic solid lipid nanoparticles loaded by integrin β1 plasmid DNA attenuates IL-1β-induced apoptosis of chondrocyte

Aging-related inflammation is tightly linked with the development of osteoarthritis (OA). As the pro-inflammatory cytokine, IL-1β has been associated with physical dysfunction and frailty. It is still elusive whether and how IL-1β blockade improves the outcome of OA. Here we develop a cationic solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) system that effectively mediate non-viral delivery of plasmid DNA (pDNA) into cells. Compared with other DNA transfer technologies including lipofetamin 2000, SLNs-pDNA system is less toxic and exerts identical effectiveness on DNA transfer. Loaded with integrin β1 overexpression pDNA, the SLNs-pDNA mainly localized in cytoplasm and enforced expression of integrin β1 in rat chondrocytes. Moreover, upon exposure to IL-1β stimulation, SLNs-pDNA treatment attenuates the apoptosis rat chondrocytes and augments tissue repair. Our data thus demonstrate that SLNs-pDNA functions as a potential therapeutic nanomedicine in the treatment of osteoarthritis.