Guichen Zhou

Biodegradable self-assembled nanoparticles of poly (D,L-lactide-co-glycolide)/hyaluronic acid block copolymers for target delivery of docetaxel to breast cancer

To develop biodegradable docetaxel-loaded self-assembled nanoparticles of poly (D,L-lactide-co-glycolide)/hyaluronic acid block copolymers were successfully synthesized. These copolymers could form nanoparticles with small size (<200 nm), an acceptable CMC (~7.9 mg/L), typical core/shell structure and superior stability in one week. DTX-loaded PLGA(502H)-b-HA(5.6k) nanoparticles (DTX/SANPs) showed a biphasic release pattern within 120 h, and exhibited enhanced cytotoxicity toward CD44-overexpressing MDA-MB-231 cells. Cellular uptake study indicated that PLGA(502H)-b-HA(5.6k) nanoparticles (SANPs) were taken up in MDA-MB-231 cells by CD44-mediated endocytosis. Pharmacokinetics study revealed DTX/SANPs could prolong the circulation of DTX in the blood. In vivo studies demonstrated that SANPs exhibited enhanced tumor targeting and antitumor activity with lower systemic toxicity. In conclusion, DTX/SANPs have great potential for targeted chemotherapy for CD44-overexpressing breast cancer.

The eradication of breast cancer cells and stem cells by 8-hydroxyquinoline-loaded hyaluronan modified mesoporous silica nanoparticle-supported lipid bilayers containing docetaxel

Breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs), which can fully recapitulate the tumor origin and are often resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, are currently considered as a major obstacle for breast cancer treatment. To achieve the goal of both targeting BCSCs and bulk breast cancer cells, we developed 8-hydroxyquinoline-loaded hyaluronan modified mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN)-supported lipid bilayers (HA-MSS) and docetaxel-loaded MSS. The results showed that the size of all the nanoparticles was smaller than 200 nm. BCSCs were enriched from MCF-7 cells by a sphere formation method and identified with the CD44(+)/CD24(-) phenotype. Quantitative and qualitative analysis demonstrated that HA promotes the uptake of HA-MSS in CD44-overexpressing MCF-7 mammospheres, revealing the mechanism of receptor-mediated endocytosis. DTX or DTX-loaded MSS showed much enhanced cytotoxicity against MCF-7 cells compared with MCF-7 mammospheres, whereas 8-HQ or 8-HQ-loaded HA-MSS showed much enhanced cytotoxicity against MCF-7 mammospheres compared with MCF-7 cells. In the MCF-7 xenografts in mice, the combination therapy with DTX-loaded MSS plus 8-HQ-loaded HA-MSS produced the strongest antitumor efficacy, with little systemic toxicity (reflecting by loss of body weight) in mice. Thus, this combination therapy may provide a potential strategy to improve the therapy of breast cancer by eradication of breast cancer cells together with BCSCs.

In vitro and in vivo study of thymosin alpha1 biodegradable in situ forming poly(lactide-co-glycolide) implants

The purpose of this study was to develop poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) based in situ forming implants (ISFI) for controlled release of thymosin alpha 1 (Talpha1). The ISFI was prepared by dissolving PLGA in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) or mixtures of NMP and triacetin. Talpha1 microparticles, prepared by spray-freeze drying method with chitosan or bovine serum albumin as a protectant, were suspended in PLGA solutions. The effects of Talpha1 pre-encapsulation, PLGA molecular weight, PLGA concentration and organic solvents composition on the in vivo Talpha1 release were evaluated by subcutaneously injecting Talpha1-loaded ISFI into Sprague-Dawley Rats. The pharmacological efficacy of Talpha1-loaded ISFI was examined using immunosuppressive BALB/c mice induced by cyclophosphamide. The ISFI composed of Talpha1 pre-encapsulated with chitosan, higher molecule-weight PLGA at higher concentration and more triacetin showed a lower initial release and a longer sustained release period. The optimal prescription of our study showed a low initial release of 29.3% (24 h), followed by a slow and continuous drug release up to 28 d in vivo. An in vitro release device was designed to mimic the in vivo release of Talpha1, and good correlation was observed between the in vitro and in vivo releases, with the linear correlation coefficient of 0.9899. Talpha1-loaded ISFI showed low cytotoxicity as tested by CCK-8 assay. Talpha1-loaded ISFI significantly increased the thymic index and spleen index of immunosuppressive mice. These results suggest that the ISFI is a suitable system for controlled release of Talpha1.

A novel pulsed drug-delivery system: polyelectrolyte layer-by-layer coating of chitosan–alginate microgels

Purpose The aim of this report was to introduce a novel “core-membrane” microgel drug-delivery device for spontaneously pulsed release without any external trigger. Methods The microgel core was prepared with alginate and chitosan. The semipermeable membrane outside the microgel was made of polyelectrolytes including polycation poly(allylamine hydrochloride) and sodium polystyrene sulfonate. The drug release of this novel system was governed by the swelling pressure of the core and the rupture of the outer membrane. Results The size of the core-membrane microgel drug-delivery device was 452.90 ± 2.71 μm. The surface charge depended on the layer-by-layer coating of polyelectrolytes, with zeta potential of 38.6 ± 1.4 mV. The confocal microscope exhibited the layer-by-layer outer membrane and inner core. The in vitro release profile showed that the content release remained low during the first 2.67 hours. After this lag time, the cumulative release increased to 80% in the next 0.95 hours, which suggested a pulsed drug release. The in vivo drug release in mice showed that the outer membrane was ruptured at approximately 3 to 4 hours, as drug was explosively released. Conclusion These data suggest that the encapsulated substance in the core-membrane microgel delivery device can achieve a massive drug release after outer membrane rupture. This device was an effective system for pulsed drug delivery.