Key Takeaways & Executive Findings
- •• Nanobiomedical materials demonstrate significant anti-inflammatory and pro-repair effects in osteoarthritis treatment, addressing limitations of conventional therapies. • Nanocomposite materials integrate functions of different single nanomaterials, enabling multifunctional therapeutic agents for enhanced osteoarthritis management. • Nanobiomedicine design leverages multi-responsive mechanisms (pH, enzyme, temperature) for precise and controlled drug release, improving therapeutic efficacy. • Current research focuses on clinical translation, long-term safety, targeting precision, and standardized manufacturing of nanobiomedical approaches.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The application of nanobiomedicine can effectively alleviate oxidative stress in osteoarthritis, reduce inflammatory responses of osteoarthritis, and promote joint surface repair, thus delaying the occurrence and development of osteoarthritis. OBJECTIVE: To review the research status, future development, and challenges of nanobiomedicine in delaying the progression of osteoarthritis. METHODS: The first author searched for articles indexed in the CNKI, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. The literature search time limit was from the establishment of each database to April 2025. The Chinese and the English search terms were "nanobiomedicine, nanocomposited hydrogel, engineered organisms, osteoarthritis." Finally, 90 articles that met the criteria were selected for review. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Nanobiomedical research is constantly evolving, with nanobiomaterials becoming a mainstream research direction in the treatment of osteoarthritis. Nanobiomedical materials possess anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, cartilage repair, precise drug delivery, cell differentiation promotion, and targeted therapy, offering a new avenue for the treatment of osteoarthritis that transcends the limitations of traditional therapies (such as short-term drug effects, significant adverse reactions, and surgical trauma). The design of nanobiomedicine is based on multi-responsive mechanisms such as pH, enzyme, and temperature, exhibiting integrated characteristics of intelligent response and functional enhancement, thereby achieving precise and controlled drug release of nano-drug delivery systems.
1. Introduction
With the acceleration of population aging, the incidence of osteoarthritis has been increasing year by year. Osteoarthritis is a multifactorial degenerative joint disease that not only causes severe pain and disability but also leads to psychological distress and reduced quality of life. Current clinical treatment emphasizes patient self-management, aiming to alleviate pain and improve joint function; however, effective means to promote regeneration of degenerated cartilage or delay disease progression are lacking. This therapeutic bottleneck has prompted researchers to explore novel therapeutic strategies.
In recent years, with in-depth research on the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis, key pathological factors such as inflammatory response, oxidative stress, extracellular matrix metabolic imbalance, and apoptosis have been gradually revealed, providing a theoretical basis for targeted therapeutic strategies. In this context, nanobiomedicine has rapidly emerged due to its material properties and functional diversity, showing broad application prospects in the field of osteoarthritis treatment. Nanobiomaterials can exert effects through various mechanisms, such as serving as drug carriers for efficient and precise drug delivery, enhancing drug efficacy at the joint site; the materials themselves also possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, modulating the inflammatory microenvironment within the joint and reducing inflammatory response and oxidative damage; furthermore, certain materials can promote chondrocyte proliferation and extracellular matrix synthesis, facilitating repair of damaged articular cartilage.
This review first summarizes current treatment methods for osteoarthritis, focusing on the status and limitations of in situ injection therapy. It then summarizes the latest research progress of nanobiomaterials in the treatment of this disease, including single nanosystems, nanocomposite materials, nano-drug delivery systems, nanocomposite hydrogels, biohybrid materials, and other nanosystems. Finally, it provides an outlook on future research in this field, aiming to offer new strategies and ideas for precise treatment and clinical translation of osteoarthritis.
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WU Ningyuan, WEI Zhiyi, FENG Hao, GAO Ming (2026). Frontiers and hot topics of nanobiomedicine in delaying the progression of osteoarthritis. Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research. https://doi.org/10.12307/2026.21467
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is nanobiomedicine and how does it apply to osteoarthritis?
Nanobiomedicine is an interdisciplinary field combining nanotechnology and biomedicine. It utilizes the unique physicochemical properties of nanomaterials at the nanoscale to develop targeted drug carriers, biosensors, and tissue engineering scaffolds. In osteoarthritis, nanobiomedical materials can alleviate oxidative stress, reduce inflammation, and promote cartilage repair, thereby delaying disease progression.
What are the main limitations of traditional osteoarthritis treatments?
Traditional treatments for osteoarthritis include medication and surgery. Medications often have short-term effects and significant adverse reactions, while surgical procedures are invasive and traumatic. These limitations highlight the need for novel therapeutic approaches that can provide sustained relief and disease modification.
How do nanobiomedical materials achieve targeted drug delivery in osteoarthritis?
Nanobiomedical materials can be designed to respond to specific stimuli in the osteoarthritic joint microenvironment, such as pH, enzymes, or temperature. This multi-responsive design enables precise and controlled release of therapeutic agents at the target site, enhancing drug efficacy and reducing systemic side effects.
What are the current challenges in translating nanobiomedicine for osteoarthritis treatment?
Key challenges include verifying the clinical translation mechanisms and long-term safety of nanobiomedical approaches, improving targeting precision and adaptability to the joint microenvironment, and standardizing manufacturing processes to ensure consistent quality and scalability.
What future directions are suggested for nanobiomedicine in osteoarthritis?
Future research should focus on developing multifunctional nanocomposite materials that integrate multiple therapeutic functions, enhancing biocompatibility and biodegradability, and conducting rigorous preclinical and clinical studies to establish safety and efficacy. Additionally, personalized nanomedicine approaches tailored to individual patient profiles may be explored.
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