Dissolving Hyaluronic Acid-Based Microneedles to Transdermally Deliver Eugenol Combined with Photothermal Therapy for Acne Vulgaris Treatment

• Published in: ACS applied materials & interfaces 2024-05, Vol.16 (17), p.21595-21609
• Main Authors: Wang, Qi, Gan, Zhiyang, Wang, Xinxin, Li, Xinying, Zhao, Lei, Li, Derong, Xu, Zhilang, Mu, Changdao, Ge, Liming, Li, Defu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: acne; Acne Vulgaris - drug therapy; Acne Vulgaris - therapy; Administration, Cutaneous; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - chemistry; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; antibacterial properties; biocompatibility; Biological and Medical Applications of Materials and Interfaces; Drug Delivery Systems; eugenol; Eugenol - chemistry; Eugenol - pharmacology; Humans; Hyaluronic Acid - chemistry; inflammation; irradiation; Mice; Needles; oral administration; Photothermal Therapy; photothermotherapy; Propionibacterium; Propionibacterium acnes - drug effects; Skin; strength (mechanics); toxicity; transdermal application
• ISSN: 1944-8244; 1944-8252; 1944-8252
• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c01790

A microneedle transdermal drug delivery system simultaneously avoids systemic toxicity of oral administration and low efficiency of traditional transdermal administration, which is of great significance for acne vulgaris therapy. Herein, eugenol-loaded hyaluronic acid-based dissolving microneedles (E@P-EO-HA MNs) with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory activities are developed for acne vulgaris therapy via eugenol transdermal delivery integrated with photothermal therapy. E@P-EO-HA MNs are pyramid-shaped with a sharp tip and a hollow cavity structure, which possess sufficient mechanical strength to penetrate the stratum corneum of the skin and achieve transdermal delivery, in addition to excellent in vivo biocompatibility. Significantly, E@P-EO-HA MNs show effective photothermal therapy to destroy sebaceous glands and achieve antibacterial activity against deep-seated Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) under near-infrared-light irradiation. Moreover, cavity-loaded eugenol is released from rapidly dissolved microneedle bodies to play a sustained antibacterial and anti-inflammatory therapy on the P. acnes infectious wound. E@P-EO-HA MNs based on a synergistic therapeutic strategy combining photothermal therapy and eugenol transdermal administration can significantly alleviate inflammatory response and ultimately facilitate the repair of acne vulgaris. Overall, E@P-EO-HA MNs are expected to be clinically applied as a functional minimally invasive transdermal delivery strategy for superficial skin diseases therapy in skin tissue engineering.