CDs-PEI/siIhh Delivery System for the Treatment of Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent degenerative cartilage disorder with few effective therapeutic options. Overexpression of Indian hedgehog protein (Ihh) is linked to OA progression, and inhibiting Ihh expression has been shown to alleviate OA symptoms. However, the dense cartilage structure made it difficult to efficiently deliver nucleic acids to deeper cartilage regions. In this study, we developed a nucleic acid delivery system, CDs-PEI/siIhh. The regulatory effect of the CDs-PEI/siIhh on gene expression was assessed using PCR and western blotting. The results demonstrated that CDs-PEI/siIhh effectively modulated both genes and protein expression in chondrocytes. Cartilage explant penetration experiments confirmed that CDs-PEI/siIhh successfully delivered siIhh to chondrocytes in the deeper regions of cartilage. In vivo experiments indicated that CDs-PEI/siIhh inhibited cartilage degeneration and matrix degradation. In conclusion, CDs-PEI/siIhh represents a promising strategy for the alleviation of OA.