Injectable hyaluronic acid-metformin conjugate gel for sustained intra-articular delivery and prevention of post-traumatic osteoarthritis.

ABSTRACT: We developed an injectable hyaluronic acid-metformin (HA-Met) conjugate gel for localized intra-articular delivery to mitigate post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). Conjugation was verified by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and high-performance liquid chromatography. In vitro studies showed an initial 24-h burst attributable to unbound Met, followed by prolonged local retention from the conjugated fraction under physiological incubation without hyaluronidase treatment; by contrast, a simple HA + Met mixture released Met in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) completely in 3 days. In high dosage hyaluronidase-containing PBS, Met retained in the HA-Met conjugate gel up to 4 days. In vivo, Met remained detectable in mouse knee tissues for

SUBMITTER: Pastukh V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12821215 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature