Dissertation Date: February 7, 2024
Bone related diseases such as osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, metastatic bone cancer, osteogenesis imperfecta, and Paget’s disease, are primarily treated with pharmacologic therapies that often exhibit limited efficacy and substantial side effects. Bone injuries or fractures are mainly repaired with biocompatible materials; however, many current options are also inefficient and produce mixed results in sufficiently regenerating healthy and homogenous bone tissue. Each of these bone conditions, both localized and systemic, use different strategies with the same goal of achieving a healthy bone environment.
In this study, we developed a new type of bone-based nanoparticles (BPs) using the entire organic extracellular matrix (ECM) of decellularized porcine bone, additionally encapsulating indocyanine green dye (ICG) for in vivo monitoring capability. Utilizing the regenerative capability of bone ECM and the functionality of nanoparticles, the ICG encapsulated BPs (ICG/BPs) have been demonstrated to be utilized as a therapeutic option for localized and systemic orthopedic conditions. Additionally, ICG enables an in-situ monitoring capability in the Short-Wave Infrared (SWIR) spectrum, capturing the degradation or biodistribution of the ICG/BPs after both local implantation and intravenous administration, respectively. The efficacy and safety of the ICG/BPs lay the foundation for future investigations, which will delve into optimization for clinical translation.
