An exosomal approach for oral delivery of resveratrol: Implications for inflammatory bowel disease treatment in rat model

Abstract

AimsResveratrol (RSV) is a polyphenolic substance found in numerous natural products. Despite the wide range of therapeutic activities, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, the poor pharmacokinetic characteristics decrease the RSV bioavailability following oral administration. Milk-derived exosomes (MEXOs), as a class of natural nanocarriers, are promising candidates for oral drug delivery approaches. Main methodsThe current study developed RSV-loaded MEXOs to enhance the RSV oral bioavailability, introducing a suitable exosomal formulation for suppressing colon inflammation in acetic acid-induced rat models. Key findingsThe results showed a remarkable encapsulation efficiency of 83.33 %. The in vitro release profile demonstrated a good retaining capability in acidic conditions (pH 1.2) and a considerable release in a simulated duodenal environment (pH 6.8). According to the permeability study, encapsulation of RSV improved its transportation across the Caco-2 monolayer. Moreover, the in vivo and histological analysis results proved that the RSV-MEXOs formulation successfully alleviates the inflammation in colitis rat models and effectively relieves the colitis. SignificanceOur findings suggest that MEXOs should be of great attention as promising oral drug delivery vehicles for further clinical evaluations.