Non-Biologic Nanodelivery Therapies for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a common chronic inflammatory disease characterized by progressive bone and cartilage destruction causing severe functional limitations, increased morbidity and mortality rate, which results in a strong negative socioeconomic impact. Current therapies only slow the progression of the disease and try to enhance quality of life. Furthermore, such therapies present several drawbacks due to the adverse effects caused by the lack of selectively of the drugs and frequent and long-term dosing that lead to patient non-compliance. Drug delivery systems based on nanocarriers represent a promising approach to overcome the current therapeutic limitations because they can selectively carry drugs to inflamed synovium allowing for improved drug efficacy, thereby reducing the biodistribution of anti-rheumatic drugs. Additionally, controlled drug release can lead to the reduction of drug dosages. The increasing interest and confidence that nanocarriers can revolutionize the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis has led to an increased number of investigations in this field. In this context, the present review focuses on drug delivery system strategies for non-biological drugs developed for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.