Guanghui Hou,Junmin Qian,Weijun Xu,Tiantian Sun,Jinlei Wang,Yaping Wang,Aili Suo
The combination of chemotherapy and photothermal therapy is acknowledged as one of the most promising approaches in cancer treatment. Targeted delivery and controlled drug release are two important factors for combined chemo-photothermal therapy. In this study, a multifunctional nanoplatform based on gold nanorod (GNR) decorated with folate-conjugated poly(ethylene glycol)- b -poly(L-γ-glutamylhydrazine) (FEGGH) containing disulfide linker and dihydroxyphenyl groups was developed for targeted combined chemo-photothermal therapy of breast cancer. FEGGH was synthesized by ring-opening polymerization of γ-benzyl- l -glutamate -N- carboxyanhydride using folate/cystamine-heterobifunctionalized poly(ethylene glycol) as an initiator, following by hydrazinolysis and carbodiimide reactions. FEGGH was decorated onto GNR through Au-catechol bonds. Chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin (DOX) was loaded onto the nanoplatform through pH-sensitive hydrazone linkage, obtaining final product FEGGH DOX -GNR. The DOX-loaded nanoplatform displayed excellent photostability and reduction/pH dual-responsive drug release behavior. Cytological studies demonstrated the effective internalization of FEGGH DOX -GNR into MCF-7 cells via folate-mediated endocytosis and additive therapeutic effect of combined photothermal-chemotherapy. These results indicate that our nanoplatform may be a promising strategy for targeted combined chemo-photothermal therapy of breast cancer.
Minghui Xu,Junmin Qian,Aili Suo,Ning Cui,Yu Yao,Weijun Xu,Ting Liu,Hongjie Wang
Combined treatment of chemotherapeutics and small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) is a promising therapy strategy for breast carcinoma via their synergetic effects. In this study, to improve the therapeutic effect of doxorubicin (DOX), novel triblock copolymers, folate/methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(L-glutamate-hydrazide)-block-poly(N,N-dimethylaminopropyl methacrylamide) (FA/m-PEG-b-P(LG-Hyd)-b-PDMAPMA), were synthesized and used as a vehicle for the co-delivery of DOX and P-glycoprotein (P-gp) siRNA into breast cancer cells. The triblock copolymers were synthesized by a combination of ring-opening polymerization of γ-benzyl-L-glutamate-N-carboxyanhydride using cystamine-terminated heterotelechelic PEG derivatives possessing folate or methoxy end groups (FA/m-PEG-Cys) as initiators and reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer polymerization of N,N-dimethylaminopropyl methacrylamide followed by hydrazinolysis. The successful synthesis of the copolymers was confirmed by 1H NMR and gel permeation chromatography. DOX was covalently conjugated onto the poly(L-glutamate-hydrazide) blocks via a pH-labile hydrazone linkage, and the DOX-conjugated triblock copolymers could self-assemble into nanoparticles in aqueous solutions. P-glycoprotein (P-gp) siRNA was then bound to the cationic poly(N,N-dimethylaminopropyl methacrylamide) (PDMAPMA) blocks through an electrostatic interaction, resulting in the formation of spherical nanocomplexes with an average diameter of 196.8 nm and a zeta potential of +28.3 mV. The in vitro release behaviors of DOX and siRNA from the nanocomplexes were pH- and reduction-dependent, and the release rates were much faster under a reductive acidic condition (pH 5.0, glutathione: 10 mM) simulating the intracellular endo-lysosomal environment of cancer cells compared to physiological conditions. The fast payload release rates were closely related to both the glutathione-triggered detachment of PEG blocks from the nanocomplex surface and the pH-sensitive cleavage of hydrazone linkages. FA-decorated nanocomplexes showed higher cellular uptake efficiency and cytotoxicity against MCF-7 cells than FA-free nanocomplexes, as confirmed by confocal laser scanning microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, MTT and flow cytometry analyses. Our results demonstrated that the multifunctional triblock copolymer-mediated co-delivery of DOX and P-gp siRNA might be a new promising therapeutic strategy for breast cancer treatment.
To further fine tune drug release and enhance therapeutic effects of polyhedral oligomericsilsesquioxane (POSS)-based nanomedicine, a starlike organic–inorganic conjugate was synthesized by grafting semitelechelic N-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide (HPMA) copolymers to a POSS rigid core through reductively degradable disulfide bonds. The hydrophobic docetaxel (DTX) was attached to the grafts by pH-sensitive hydrazone bonds and also encapsulated into the POSS core (SP-DTX). Thus, the final amphiphilic star-shaped conjugates could self-assemble into nanoparticles and exhibited conspicuous drug-loading capacity (20.1 wt %) based on the covalently conjugated accompanied by physically encapsulated DTX. The stimuli-responsive DTX release under acidic lysosomal and reducing cytoplasmic environments was verified, leading to enhanced cytotoxicity against PC-3 human prostate carcinoma cells. To evaluate the in vivo therapeutic effects of the DTX-loaded nanovehicles objectively, a stroma-rich, prostate xenograft tumor model was generated. SP-DTX displayed uniform tumor distribution and suppressed tumor growth to a more pronounced level (tumor inhibition of 78.9%) than nonredox-sensitive SP-DTX-A (67.4%), SP-DTX-C contained DTX only in the core (65.5%) or linear P-DTX (60.7%) through enhanced depletion of cancer-associated fibroblasts and induction of apoptosis. The hybrid POSS-based polymeric nanoparticles offer an efficient approach to transport hydrophobic drugs for cancer therapy.