Functional chitosan oligosaccharide nanomicelles for topical ocular drug delivery of dexamethasone

Chitosan oligosaccharide-valylvaline-stearic acid (CSO-VV-SA) nanomicelles were designed for topical ocular drug delivery, based on peptide transporter-1 (PepT-1) active targeting. Hydrogenated castor oil-40/octoxynol-40 (HCO-40/OC-40) mixed nanomicelles were also prepared according to Cequa, just approved by FDA. Both nanomicelles produced no significant cytotoxicity and difference in human corneal epithelial cells (HCEpiC) and human conjunctival epithelial cells (HConEpiC). The active transport of CSO-VV-SA nanomicelles by PepT-1 was illustrated in the inhibitory test. Ex vivo fluorescence images of frozen sections indicated that the nanomicelles entered the posterior segment mainly through conjunctival route. In vivo precorneal retention study suggested dexamethasone from both nanomicelles could be detected for more than 3 h in rabbit tears. In vivo distribution evaluation of rabbits’ eyes showed the delivering efficiency of CSO-VV-SA nanomicelles was not inferior to that of HCO-40/OC-40 mixed nanomicelles. These findings indicated that CSO-VV-SA nanomicelles could become promising candidates for further clinical application.