Lung-Targeted Delivery of Cepharanthine by an Erythrocyte-Anchoring Strategy for the Treatment of Acute Lung Injury

The study investigated an innovative erythrocyte-anchoring strategy to enhance the delivery of cepharanthine (CPA) for treating acute lung injury (ALI). By encapsulating CPA in chitosan-coated nanoparticles (CPA-CNPs) and anchoring them to erythrocytes, researchers achieved over 80% adhesion efficiency, significantly improving CPA's pharmacokinetics and bioavailability. This method increased CPA accumulation in lung tissue by up to 6-fold and effectively reduced inflammation and lung injury in a mouse model. The erythrocyte-anchored nanoparticles (E-CPA-CNPs) demonstrated strong biocompatibility, minimal cytotoxicity, and reduced phagocytosis, leading to prolonged circulation time and enhanced therapeutic efficacy. The study highlighted the potential of this strategy for targeted lung drug delivery and suggested further research to optimize nanoparticle properties for clinical applications.