Hyaluronic Acid-Based Nanomotors: Crossing Mucosal Barriers to Tackle Antimicrobial Resistance

Bacterial infections pose a significant global health challenge aggravated by the rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Among the obstacles preventing effective treatment are biological barriers (BBs) within the body such as the mucus layer. These BBs trap antimicrobials, necessitating higher doses and ultimately accelerating AMR. Addressing this issue requires innovative therapeutic strategies capable of bypassing BBs to deliver drugs more effectively. Here, we present nanomotors (NMs) based on hyaluronic acid (HA)- and urease-nanogels (NGs) as a solution to navigate effectively in viscous media by catalyzing the decomposition of urea into ammonium and carbon dioxide. These HA-based nanomotors (HA-NMs) were loaded with chloramphenicol (CHL) antibiotic and demonstrated superior antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli(E. coli) compared to mesoporous silica NMs (MSNP-NMs), a reference in the field of NMs. Moreover, using an in vitro transwell model we evaluated the ability of HA-NMs to penetrate mucin barriers, effectively reducing E. coli proliferation, whereas the free antibiotic did not reduce bacteria proliferation. The optical density reduction at 24 h was over ten times greater than with free CHL. These organic-based enzyme-powered NMs represent a significant advancement in drug delivery, offering a promising approach to combat AMR while addressing the challenges of crossing complex BBs.