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Nanofibers (NFs) offer an alternative option for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) by addressing unmet clinical problems. In this study, anti‐AD drugs, donepezil (DO) and curcumin (CUR), are loaded in polylactic acid/polycaprolactone NFs. The effect of fiber diameter on drug release behavior is mainly observed, and the successful loading of DO and CUR to NFs is demonstrated. The tensile strength of DO/CUR‐loaded NFs (DNFs) with lower fiber diameter is found to be higher. The working temperature is increased by the decrease of glass transition temperature and increase of the melting temperature after loading drugs. Furthermore, the increase in the percentage of swelling and decrease in the degradation rate for NFs are observed due to the increase of fiber diameter. Encapsulation efficiency and burst release percentages for DNFs are augmented by the increase of fiber diameter. Nevertheless, DNFs exhibit a sustained drug release manner over 2 weeks. NFs do not demonstrate a toxic effect on L929 (mouse fibroblast) cells, and additionally, they promote cell proliferation. Considering all these results, it is proven that the fiber diameter affects all characteristic features of NFs, and DNFs lead to a new and promising drug delivery system for the treatment of AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A composite nanofiber composed of three polymers, namely polyvinyl alcohol/polyvinyl pyrrolidone/polyethylene oxide, is produced. The experiments are constructed using three design of experiment techniques, Taguchi L9, Taguchi L27, and Screening method. The experiments are verified using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) method and later a mathematical model is developed using the regression method. The impact of electrospun processing parameters, namely applied voltage, flow rate, and working distance, on nanofibers' diameter is measured. The working distance is a significant factor in controlling the size of the fiber diameter, while the applied voltage has the lowest effect on it. As a result of the regression equation, a Genetic algorithm is used to find the optimum variables for the required fiber diameter, which is 156 nm for flow rate = 0.001 mL h−1, voltage = 30 kV, and distance = 200 mm with a 3% difference from the experimental fiber diameter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently developed nanoparticles and nanofibers present new brain‐specific treatment strategies, especially for Alzheimer's disease treatment. In this study, donepezil (DO)‐loaded PLGA nanoparticles (DNP) are embedded in PVA/PEG nanofibers (DNPF) produced by pressurized gyration for sublingual administration. SEM images showed produced drug‐loaded and pure nanofibers, which have sizes between 978 and 1123 nm, demonstrated beadless morphology and homogeneous distribution. FT‐IR, XRD, and DSC results proved the produced nanoparticles and fibers to consist of the DO and other polymers. The in vitro drug release test presented that the release profile of DO is completed at the end of the 18th day. It is released by the first order kinetic model. DNPF has an ultra‐fast release profile via its disintegration within 2 sec, which proved itself to be suitable for the administration sublingually. All samples presented above ≈90% cell viability via their non‐toxic natures on SH‐SY5Y human neuroblastoma cells by using Alamar blue assay. The anti‐Alzheimer effects of DO, DNP, and DNPF are evaluated on the Aβ1−42‐induced SH‐SY5Y cells at 1, 5, and 10 µM as treatment groups. The 1 µM dosage exhibited the most significant neuroprotective effects, which showed enhanced cellular uptake and superior modulation of Alzheimer's‐related proteins, including tau and Aβ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]