Liposomal Nanosystems in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Margarida Ferreira-Silva, Catarina Faria-Silva, Pedro Viana Baptista, Eduarda Fernandes, Alexandra Ramos Fernandes, Maria Luísa Corvo
2021 Pharmaceutics  
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease that affects the joints and results in reduced patient quality of life due to its chronic nature and several comorbidities. RA is also associated with a high socioeconomic burden. Currently, several available therapies minimize symptoms and prevent disease progression. However, more effective treatments are needed due to current therapies' severe side-effects, especially under long-term use. Drug delivery systems have demonstrated their
more » ... importance—with several nanocarriers present in the market—due to their capacity to improve therapeutic drug index, for instance, by enabling passive or active targeting. The first to achieve market authorization were liposomes that still represent a considerable part of approved delivery systems. In this manuscript, we review the role of liposomes in RA treatment, address preclinical studies and clinical trials, and discuss factors that could hamper a successful clinical translation. We also suggest some alterations that could potentially improve their progression to the market.
doi:10.3390/pharmaceutics13040454 pmid:33801603 fatcat:i7wtj5en45aujhqwkpi3r6zje4