Anti-inflammatory and Restorative effects of milk exosomes and Dexamethasone-Loaded exosomes in a corneal alkali burn model

Corneal alkali burn is a common and challenging ocular trauma, necessitating the use of dexamethasone (DXMS) as a therapeutic agent. However, prolonged and frequent administration of this drug can lead to undesirable side effects, limiting its clinical application. This study aimed to investigate the role and mechanism of action of exosomes as drug carriers in corneal alkali burn repair. We employed centrifugation to isolate milk exosomes (EXO) as nanocarriers. We observed that EXO enhanced the activity and migration of corneal epithelial cells, expediting the repair process following corneal injury. Additionally, a nano-drug delivery model (DXMS@EXO) was designed using ultrasound to load DXMS into exosomes, thus enabling targeted delivery to inflammatory cells and enhancing drug efficacy. DXMS@EXO inhibited the inflammatory processes in the corneal alkali burn model by modulating the classical Wnt signaling pathway, thereby promoting corneal re-epithelialization and wound healing and accelerating the repair process of corneal alkali burn. Neither EXO nor DXMS@EXO exhibited significant side effects during the course of treatment. This study highlighted the substantial potential of EXO and DXMS@EXO in improving drug efficacy and facilitating the repair of corneal alkali burn.