In vitro and in vivo anti-inflammatory and tendon-healing effects in Achilles tendinopathy of long-term curcumin delivery using porous microspheres

Achilles tendinopathy is a debilitating musculoskeletal condition that causes significant pain and leads to tendon rupture. Cur/PMSs exerted anti-inflammatory effects on LPS-treated tenocytes in a dose-dependent manner by showing significant decreases in the expression of pro-inflammatory markers such as MMP-3 and MMP-13, COX-2, ADAMTS-5, IL-6, and TNF-α. We demonstrated that local injection of Cur/PMSs markedly suppressed the expression of pro-inflammatory markers in tendon tissue of rats with collagenase-induced Achilles tendinopathy. Cur/PMSs remarkably increased the tensile strength of tendon tissue in a dose-dependent manner. Our findings indicate that Cur/PMSs have great potential for tendon tissue healing and restoration in Achilles tendinopathy.