Self‐Assembly of Porphyrin–Paclitaxel Conjugates Into Nanomedicines: Enhanced Cytotoxicity due to Endosomal Escape

Nanomedicines assembled directly from drug molecules possess several advantages, including precise molecular structure and high content of drugs. Herein, porphyrin–paclitaxel conjugates (Py‐s‐s‐PTX) were synthesized by using a disulfide bond as a linker. The Py‐s‐s‐PTX could self‐assemble into nanoparticles (Py‐s‐s‐PTX NPs) with a size of about 100 nm via disulfide‐induced assembly. Py‐s‐s‐PTX NPs are highly stable under biological conditions and could be destroyed in the presence of reducing agents as revealed by dynamic light scattering. The obtained Py‐s‐s‐PTX NPs could be internalized by cancer cells via endocytosis and disassociated in the reducing cytoplasm, thus releasing PTX in cancer cells. Endosomal escape triggered upon irradiation could enhance the cytotoxicity of paclitaxel, and Py‐s‐s‐PTX NPs possess cytotoxicity comparable to that of free PTX. We believe that this disulfide‐assembled nanomedicine represents a new and important development for chemotherapy in cancer therapy.     

A facile preparation method for nanosized MOFs as a multifunctional material for cellular imaging and drug delivery

Tb-based metal-organic framework nanoparticles (Tb-MOF NPs) with good colloidal stability and stable fluorescence properties in an aqueous solution were prepared by a simple mechanical grinding of Tb-MOF with a biocompatible polymer surfactant (F127). The characteristic fluorescence property of Tb-MOF NPs allowed us to use this nanomaterial as a cell imaging probe. Efficient cellular uptake of Tb-MOF NPs apparently via an energy-dependent endocytosis was observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy. By taking advantage of the porous nature of the Tb-MOF NPs an anticancer drug (doxorubicin) was successfully loaded and delivered to kill cancer cells to demonstrate their usage as a drug delivery vehicle. This simple grinding method afforded a nanosized, multifunctional biomaterial that was used for cell imaging and drug delivery, and it can be extended to other MOFs to widen their applications.     

Multi‐Stimuli‐Responsive Polymeric Prodrug for Enhanced Cancer Treatment

Accomplishing efficient delivery of a nanomedicine to the tumor site will encounter two contradictions as follows: 1) a contradiction between prolonged circulation time and endocytosis by cancer cells; 2) a dilemma between the stability of nanomedicine during blood circulation and intracellular drug release. While developing a nanomedicine which can solve the above two contradictions simultaneously is still a challenge, here, a multi‐stimuli‐responsive polymeric prodrug (PLys‐co‐(PLys‐DA)‐co‐(PLys‐SS‐PTX))‐b‐PLGLAG‐mPEG (P‐PEP‐SS‐PTX‐DA) is synthesized which is multi‐sensitive to overexpressed matrix metalloproteinase‐2 (MMP‐2), low pH, and high concentration of glutathione in tumors. The P‐PEP‐SS‐PTX‐DA can be dePEGylated and reversed from negative at normal physiological pH to positive charge at tumor extracellular microenvironment; in this way, it can solve the contradiction between prolonged circulation time and endocytosis by cancer cells. Owing to the high reductive conditions in cancer cells, P‐PEP‐SS‐PTX‐DA is ruptured to release paclitaxel (PTX) intracellular efficiently; therefore, it can resolve the dilemma between the stability of nanomedicine during blood circulation and intracellular drug release. These indicate that the multi‐stimuli‐responsive polymeric prodrug has potential application prospects in drug delivery and cancer therapy.     

Biocompatible APTES–PEG Modified Magnetite Nanoparticles: Effective Carriers of Antineoplastic Agents to Ovarian Cancer

Magnetite nanoparticles are particularly attractive for drug delivery applications because of their size-dependent superparamagnetism, low toxicity, and biocompatibility with cells and tissues. Surface modification of iron oxide nanoparticles with biocompatible polymers is potentially beneficial to prepare biodegradable nanocomposite-based drug delivery agents for in vivo and in vitro applications. In the present study, the bare (10 nm) and polyethylene glycol (PEG)–(3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) (PA) modified (17 nm) superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIO NPs) were synthesized by coprecipitation method. The anticancer drugs, doxorubicin (DOX) and paclitaxel (PTX), were separately encapsulated into the synthesized polymeric nanocomposites for localized targeting of human ovarian cancer in vitro. Surface morphology analysis by scanning electron microscopy showed a slight increase in particle size (27?±?0.7 and 30?±?0.45 nm) with drug loading capacities of 70 and 61.5 % and release capabilities of 90 and 93 % for the DOX- and PTX-AP-SPIO NPs, respectively (p?<?0.001). Ten milligrams/milliliter DOX- and PTX-loaded AP-SPIO NPs caused a significant amount of cytotoxicity and downregulation of antiapoptotic proteins, as compared with same amounts of free drugs (p?<?0.001). In vivo antiproliferative effect of present formulation on immunodeficient female Balb/c mice showed ovarian tumor shrinkage from 2,920 to 143 mm³ after 40 days. The present formulation of APTES–PEG-SPIO-based nanocomposite system of targeted drug delivery proved to be effective enough in order to treat deadly solid tumor of ovarian cancer in vitro and in vivo.     

Redox-responsive polymer prodrug/AgNPs hybrid nanoparticles for drug delivery

The redox-responsive hybrid nanoparticles of P(MACPTS-co-MAGP)@AgNPs is developed for drug delivery and fluorescence monitoring of the drug release by applying the NSET-based strategy.     

聚乙二醇-聚磷酸酯嵌段共聚物的合成与性质以及对紫杉醇增溶作用的研究

合成了一系列甲氧基聚乙二醇(MPEG)和聚(2-甲氧基乙基亚乙基磷酸酯)(PMOEEP)的两嵌段聚合物MPEG-b-PMOEEP,并研究了该嵌段聚合物对疏水性化疗药物紫杉醇(PTX)的增溶效果.以MPEG为引发剂、异辛酸亚锡为催化剂,对五元环状磷酸酯单体2-甲氧基乙氧基-1,3,2-二氧磷杂环戊烷(MOEEP)进行开环...     

A luminescent and mesoporous core-shell structured Gd2O3 : Eu(3+)@nSiO2@mSiO2 nanocomposite as a drug carrier

In this paper, Gd(2)O(3) : Eu(3+) nanospheres have been encapsulated with nonporous silica and further layer of ordered mesoporous silica through a simple sol-gel process. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N(2) adsorption/desorption, photoluminescence (PL) spectra, and kinetic decay were used to characterize the sample. The results indicate that the nanocomposite with general 50 nm shell thickness and 270 nm core size shows typical ordered mesoporous characteristics (2.4 nm) and has spherical morphology with a smooth surface and narrow size distribution. Additionally, the obtained inorganic nanocomposite shows the characteristic emission of Eu(3+) ((5)D(0)→(7)F(1-4)) even after the loading of drug molecules. The biocompatibility test on L929 fibroblast cells using MTT assay reveals low cytotoxicity of the system. Most importantly, the nanocomposite can be used as an effective drug delivery carrier. A typical anticancer drug, doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX), was used for drug loading, and the DOX release, cytotoxicity, uptake behavior and therapeutic effects were examined. It was found that DOX is shuttled into the cell by the nanocomposite and released inside cells after endocytosis and that the DOX-loaded nanocomposite exhibited greater cytotoxicity than free DOX. These results indicate that core-shell structured Gd(2)O(3) : Eu(3+)@nSiO(2)@mSiO(2) nanocomposite has potential for drug loading and delivery into cancer cells to induce cell death.     

LHRH/TAT dual peptides-conjugated polymeric vesicles for PTT enhanced chemotherapy to overcome hepatocellular carcinoma

Combination therapy such as photothermal therapy (PTT) enhanced chemotherapy is regarded as a promising strategy for cancer treatment. Herein, we developed redox-responsive polymeric vesicles based on the amphiphilic triblock copolymer PCL-ss-PEG-ss-PCL. To avoid the limited therapeutic effect of chemotherapeutic drugs caused by systemic exposures and drug resistance, the redox-sensitive polymeric vesicles were cargoed with two chemotherapeutics: doxorubicin (DOX) and paclitaxel (PTX). Besides, indocyanine green (ICG) was encapsulated, and cell-penetrating peptides and LHRH targeting molecule were modified on the surface of polymeric vesicles. The results indicated that the polymeric vesicles can load different kinds of drugs with high drug loading content, trigger drug release in responsive to the reductive environment, realize high cellular uptake via dual peptides and laser irradiation, and achieve higher cytotoxicity via chemo-photothermal combination therapy. Hence, the redox-responsive LHRH/TAT dual peptides-conjugated PTX/DOX/ICG co-loaded polymeric micelles exhibited great potential in tumor-targeting and chemo-photothermal therapy.     

Histology and antitumor activity study of PTX-loaded micelle,a fluorescent drug delivery system prepared by PEG-TPP

We synthesized PEG-TPP as carrier to encapsulate paclitaxel(PTX) in the form of micelles to overcome its water-solubility problem. PTX-loaded micelles possess a-week stability and appropriate particle size(152.1 ±1.2 nm) which is beneficial for enhanced permeability and retention(EPR) effect. Strong pH dependence of PTX releasing from micelles is verified by in vitro release study. At cellular level, PTXloaded micelles can target mitochondria effectively which may results a better cytotoxicity of micelles(especially IC50= 0.123 ± 0.035 mmol/L of micelles and 0.298 ± 0.067 mmol/L of PTX alone on MCF-7 cells). The fluorescence distributions of both isolated and sliced organs show that the micelles can effectively target tumors. Moreover, we further prove the enhanced therapeutic effects of micelles in tumor-bearing mice comparing with PTX alone. The results show that the biodegradable drug delivery system prepared by PEG-TPP can overcome the poor solubility of paclitaxel and improve its tumor targeting and antitumor activity.     

LHRH/TAT dual peptides-conjugated polymeric vesicles for PTT enhanced chemotherapy to overcome hepatocellular carcinoma

Combination therapy such as photothermal therapy (PTT) enhanced chemotherapy is regarded as a promising strategy for cancer treatment. Herein, we developed redox-responsive polymeric vesicles based on the amphiphilic triblock copolymer PCL-ss-PEG-ss-PCL. To avoid the limited therapeutic effect of chemotherapeutic drugs caused by systemic exposures and drug resistance, the redox-sensitive polymeric vesicles were cargoed with two chemotherapeutics: doxorubicin (DOX) and paclitaxel (PTX). Besides, indocyanine green (ICG) was encapsulated, and cell-penetrating peptides and LHRH targeting molecule were modified on the surface of polymeric vesicles. The results indicated that the polymeric vesicles can load different kinds of drugs with high drug loading content, trigger drug release in responsive to the reductive environment, realize high cellular uptake via dual peptides and laser irradiation, and achieve higher cytotoxicity via chemo-photothermal combination therapy. Hence, the redox-responsive LHRH/TAT dual peptides-conjugated PTX/DOX/ICG co-loaded polymeric micelles exhibited great potential in tumor-targeting and chemo-photothermal therapy.     

新型壳聚糖基自组装纳米胶束紫杉醇药物释放载体

以N-胆甾醇琥珀酰基-O-羧甲基壳聚糖(CCMC, 胆甾醇基取代度6.9%)为原料, 在水溶液中通过探头超声处理制备其自组装凝胶纳米胶束, 采用稳态荧光探针法考察临界胶束浓度, 并通过透射电镜和动态激光散射仪检测胶束的形态大小. 以紫杉醇为模型药物, 采用透析法制备载药CCMC纳米胶束, 并通过高效液相色谱法(HPLC)考察其在纳米胶束中的包载及释放情况. 结果显示, CCMC为两亲性高分子, 在水溶液中能形成粒径为198.4 nm的规则球状胶束, 临界胶束浓度为0.018 mg/mL. 紫杉醇顺利包载于CCMC-纳米胶束内, 载药量高达34.9%; 随着载药量的增加, 胶束粒径呈增大的趋势. 体外释放实验结果显示, CCMC纳米胶束能延缓紫杉醇的释放, 释药速度和释放介质pH值密切相关.     

Polymeric Nanoparticles with a Glutathione‐Sensitive Heterodimeric Multifunctional Prodrug for In Vivo Drug Monitoring and Synergistic Cancer Therapy

Polymeric micelle‐based drug delivery systems have dramatically improved the delivery of small molecular drugs, yet multiple challenges remain to be overcome. A polymeric nanomedicine has now been engineered that possesses an ultrahigh loading (59 %) of a glutathione (GSH)‐sensitive heterodimeric multifunctional prodrug (HDMP) to effectively co‐deliver two synergistic drugs to tumors. An HDMP comprising of chemotherapeutic camptothecin (CPT) and photosensitizer 2‐(1‐hexyloxyethyl)‐2‐devinyl pyropheophorbide‐α (HPPH) was conjugated via a GSH‐cleavable linkage. The intrinsic fluorogenicity and label‐free radio‐chelation (⁶⁴Cu) of HPPH enabled direct drug monitoring by fluorescence imaging and positron emission tomography (PET). Through quantitative PET imaging, HDMP significantly improves drug delivery to tumors. The high synergistic therapeutic efficacy of HDMP‐loaded NPs highlights the rational design of HDMP, and presents exciting opportunities for polymer NP‐based drug delivery.     

Prussian Blue Derived Nanoporous Iron Oxides as Anticancer Drug Carriers for Magnetic‐Guided Chemotherapy

New nanoporous iron oxide nanoparticles with superparamagnetic behavior were successfully synthesized from Prussian blue (PB) nanocubes through a thermal conversion method and applied to the intracellular drug‐delivery systems (DDS) of bladder cancer cells (i.e., T24) with controlled release and magnetic guiding properties. The results of the MTT assay and confocal laser scanning microscopy indicate that the synthesized iron oxide nanoparticles were successfully uptaken by T24 cells with excellent biocompatibility. An anticancer drug, that is, cisplatin, was used as a model drug, and its loading/release behavior was investigated. The intracellular drug delivery efficiency was greatly enhanced for the cisplatin‐loaded, PB‐derived, magnetic‐guided drug‐delivery system compared with the non‐drug case. The synthesized nanomaterials show great potential as drug vehicles with high biocompatibility, controlled release, and magnetic targeting features for future intracellular DDS.     

Biodegradable Self‐Assembled Nanoparticles of Galactose‐Containing Amphiphilic Triblock Copolymers for Targeted Delivery of Paclitaxel to HepG2 Cells

Biodegradable self‐assembled polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) composed of poly(6‐O‐methacryloyl‐D‐galactopyranose)‐b‐poly(L‐lactide)‐b‐poly(6‐O‐methacryloyl‐D‐galactopyranose) (PMAGP‐b‐PLA‐b‐PMAGP) are prepared as carriers for the hydrophobic anticancer drug paclitaxel (PTX), to achieve target delivery to hepatoma cells. PTX can be encapsulated by the NPs with various molar ratios of L‐lactide (LA) and 6‐O‐methacryloyl‐D‐galactopyranose (MAGP) during the process of self‐assembly, and the resulting NPs exhibit high drug loading efficacy and substantial stability in aqueous solution. The size, size distribution, and morphology of the NPs are characterized using a Zetasizer Nano ZS and transmission electron microscopy. The hemolysis assay and cell cytotoxicity assay indicate that the polymeric NPs are biocompatible and non‐toxic. The cellular uptake assay demonstrates that the galactose‐containing NPs can be selectively recognized and subsequently accumulate in HepG2 cells. All of these results demonstrate that galactose‐containing polymeric NPs are potential carriers for hepatoma‐targeted drug delivery and liver cancer therapy in clinical medicine.

     

Chip-based SALDI-MS for rapid determination of intracellular ratios of glutathione to glutathione disulfide

Alterations in the ratio of glutathione(GSH) to glutathione disulfide(GSSG) reveal the cell living state and are associated with a variety of diseases. In this study, an Au NPs grafted nanoporous silicon chip was used for surface assisted laser desorption ionization-mass spectrometry(SALDI-MS) detection of GSH. Due to the bond interaction between thiol of GSH and Au NPs modified on the chip surfaces, GSH could be captured from the complex cellular lysate. Meanwhile, the composite nanostructures of Au NPs grafted porous silicon surface presented good desorption/ionization efficiency for GSH detection. The GSH levels in different tumor cells were successfully detected. Chip-based SALDI-MS was optimized for quantification of intracellular GSH/GSSG ratio changing under drug stimulation in liver tumor cells, GSSG was reduced to GSH by reductant of tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine(TCEP) and isotope-labeling GSH was as an internal standard. It was found that the increasing concentration of drug irinotecan and hypoxia culture condition caused the rapid consumption of GSH and a decrease of GSH/GSSG ratio in liver tumor cells. The developed SALDI-MS method provided a convenient way to accurately measure and rapidly monitor cellular GSH value and the ratios of GSH/GSSG.     

Co-delivery of doxorubicin and paclitaxel with linear-dendritic block copolymer for enhanced anti-cancer efficacy

A series of well-defined amphiphilic linear-dendritic block copolymers (telodendrimers, MPEG-b-PAMAM-cholesterol) with 1,2,4 or 8 cholesteryl groups (named as P1, P2, P4, P8, respectively) were synthesized. Their chemical structures were characterized with ¹H NMR and mass spectrum (MALDI-TOF MS). The telodendrimers could self-assemble into micelles in aqueous solution, and encapsulate chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin (DOX) and paclitaxel (PTX) for combination therapy. All the telodendrimers could encapsulate DOX with similar capability. However, their drug-loading capability of PTX is increased with the increasing number of cholesteryl groups. P8 exhibited much higher PTX loading efficiency than its counterparts. Thus, P8 was selected for further application of drug delivery in the paper. The drug-loading micellar nanoparticles (NPs) of P8 were spherical in shape and their diameters were less than 150 nm which were determined by dynamic light scattering measurements (DLS) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). In vitro drug release experiment demonstrated that P8 exhibited a controlled release manner for both DOX and PTX, and the two drugs were released simultaneously. In vitro cytotoxicity experiment further demonstrated that the co-delivery of DOX and PTX in P8 exhibited better anti-cancer efficiency than the delivery systems encapsulated with single drug (DOX or PTX). This indicates a synergistic effect. The co-delivery system showed potential in future anti-cancer treatment.     

Stabilizer‐Free Poly(lactide‐co‐glycolide) Nanoparticles Conjugated with Quantum Dots as a Potential Carrier Applied in Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells

We report that human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) were successfully labeled with poly(lactide‐co‐glycolide) nanoparticles (PLGA NPs) surface‐conjugated quantum dots (QDs) (PLGA‐QD NPs) via endocytosis pathway. These NPs were not toxicity even treated with PLGA‐QD NPs at high concentrations for at least four weeks. Besides, PLGA‐QD NPs‐labeled hMSCs did not change their proliferation and differentiation capability toward the cell fates of adipocytes, osteocytes, and chrondrocytes. It's known that PLGA has been widely employed to act as delivery carrier which encapsulates drugs and releases them under a controlled way. Currently, we have also demonstrated that FITC‐loaded PLGA‐QD NPs degraded in hMSCs to achieve intracellular release of FITC. The aim of this research is to investigate viability, proliferation and differentiation capability and the potential for gene delivery of MSCs labeled with PLGA‐QD NPs. In addition to PLGA‐QD NPs, QDs alone were used to serve as a control set for comparison.     

负载紫杉醇的聚乳酸纳米纤维对宫颈癌的抑制作用

从细胞水平和动物模型两个层次上研究了负载紫杉醇的聚乳酸纤维毡诱导U14宫颈癌细胞凋亡和抑制小鼠U14皮下移植瘤生长的能力.将U14细胞在纤维毡存在下孵育48 h,经Annexin V-FITC及PI双染后行流式细胞分析.结果表明,载药纤维(折合紫杉醇浓度40)g/mL)组总凋亡细胞比例(25.6%)明显高于对照组(1.0%)和未载药纤维组(1.5%).建立U14宫颈癌皮下移植瘤小鼠模型,将其随机分为3组.A组为对照组,不做任何处理.B、C组小鼠以纳米纤维毡覆盖于肿瘤表面,覆盖率约为70%～75%.其中B组纤维毡为纳米聚乳酸电纺丝纤维,不载药,C组为同种材料纤维毡,载有33 wt%紫杉醇.经处理后第7、14天每组各处死动物5～7只,剥离肿瘤,照相,称重,计算抑瘤率.结果表明,载药纤维对U14宫颈癌皮下移植瘤有明显抑制作用(48%～56%).用未载药聚乳酸纤维包裹肿瘤表面,肿瘤质量与对照组无显著差别,说明聚乳酸纤维本身对肿瘤没有抑制作用,载药纤维组所观察到的抑瘤效果为紫杉醇从纤维毡中释放所致.     

Endocytosis-like uptake of surface-modified drug nanocarriers into giant unilamellar vesicles

We had previously developed surface-modified poly (D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) for use as a cellular drug delivery system. The cellular uptake of PLGA-NPs was mediated predominantly by endocytosis, and this uptake was increased by surface modifications with polymers, such as chitosan (CS) and polysorbate 80 (P80). In the present study, we prepared a cell-sized giant unilamellar vesicle (GUV) that mimics a cell membrane to investigate the interaction between cell membranes and NPs. Endocytosis-like uptake of NPs into a GUV was observed when the NPs were modified with nonionic surfactant P80 probably due to change in viscoelasticity and enhanced fusion activity of the membrane induced by P80. In contrast, unmodified NPs and those modified with CS were not internalized into a GUV. These results suggest that surface properties of PLGA-NPs are an important formulation parameter for their interaction with lipid membranes.     

环状RGDs修饰的分子刷型共聚物在成像及药物运输中的应用

以具有丰富接枝侧链的阴离子型共轭聚合物分子刷PFPANa为材料,通过简单的一步修饰法在聚合物的部分接枝侧链上引入靶向配体分子c(RGDyK),并利用分子刷侧链上未修饰配体分子的羧基负离子与抗癌药物DOX静电结合,制备了基于分子刷型共轭聚合物的靶向细胞成像和载药系统.研究结果表明载药系统对DOX药物的载药量可达13.3 wt%,体外细胞实验研究结果表明该载药系统可实现对肿瘤细胞的靶向选择性成像,并显著促进了肿瘤细胞对DOX药物的摄取,具有良好的抗肿瘤细胞生长效果,显著提高了药物运输效率.