There is an increasing need to develop improved and non-invasive strategies to treat spinal cord injury (SCI). Nanoparticles (NPs) are an enabling technology to improve drug delivery, modulate inflammatory responses, and restore functional responses following SCI. However, the complex pathophysiology associated with SCI presents several distinct challenges that must be overcome for sufficient NP drug delivery to the spinal cord. The objective of this mini-review is to highlight the physiological challenges and cell types available for modulation and discuss several promising advancements using NPs to improve SCI treatment. We will focus our discussion on recent innovative approaches in NP drug delivery and how the implementation of multifactorial approaches to address the proinflammatory and complex immune dysfunction in SCI offers significant potential to improve outcomes in SCI.
Keywords: drug delivery; inflammation; nanoparticles; spinal cord injury; tissue engineering.