Tumor Targeting and pH-Sensitive Inclusion Complex Based on HP-β-CD as a Potential Carrier for Paclitaxel: Fabrication, Molecular Docking, and Characterization

In this study, a tumor-targeting and pH-sensitive inclusion complex based on the host–guest recognition between the chitosan and folic acid grafted HP-β-CD (FA–CS–CD) and stearic acid modified 2-benzimidazolemethanol (BM-SA) was designed and fabricated for the controlled delivery of paclitaxel (PTX). Through the combination of computational simulations and experiments, the interaction between FA–CS–CD, BM-SA, and PTX was investigated, and the optimized preparation method was obtained. For the optimized PTX-loaded FA–CS–CD/BM-SA inclusion complex, the particle size and zeta potential were 146 nm and +15.4 mV, respectively. In vitro drug release study revealed the pH-triggered drug release behavior of the inclusion complex. Both in vitro and in vivo evaluations demonstrated that the PTX-loaded FA–CS–CD/BM-SA inclusion complex exhibited enhanced antitumor efficiency and minimized systemic toxicity. This system might be a promising carrier for PTX.