Liposomes for anti-inflammatory drug delivery in ocular diseases: From in vivo models to clinical application

Ocular drug delivery remains a unique challenge due to the barriers to drug penetration in the eye. Nanomedicines represent a class of advanced drug delivery systems that can potentially improve drug delivery into the eye. They have the potential to usher in a new era for eye therapeutics by replacing eyedrops as the primary mode of treatment for front of eye diseases and reducing reliance on eye injections for back of eye diseases. In this Ph.D. thesis, we reviewed the landscape for promising drug delivery systems in various stages of development for the treatment of eye inflammation. We then explored the use of liposomes as a drug delivery system for corticosteroids to treat eye inflammation, the most common key factor underlying ocular disease. Anterior uveitis and proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) animal models, representing front and back of eye inflammation, respectively, were chosen to test our hypothesis that a single dose of liposomal steroids is effective and can provide sustained anti-inflammatory action for eye inflammatory diseases. Our promising preclinical results culminated in a first in man, Phase I/II clinical trial that demonstrated the safety and effectiveness of a single dose of liposomal steroid, injected under the conjunctiva as part of the surgical procedure, replacing eyedrops as anti-inflammatory treatment after cataract surgery. In conclusion, we demonstrated the attractiveness of a single dose of a liposomal drug delivery system in delivering steroid for the effective treatment of both front and back of eye diseases.