Folate-decorated carboxymethyl cellulose for controlled doxorubicin delivery

Polysaccharides as a Hydrophilic Building Block of Amphiphilic Block Copolymers for the Conception of Nanocarriers

Polysaccharides are gaining increasing attention for their relevance in the production of sustainable materials. In the domain of biomaterials, polysaccharides play an important role as hydrophilic components in the design of amphiphilic block copolymers for the development of drug delivery systems, in particular nanocarriers due to their outstanding biocompatibility, biodegradability, and structural versatility. The presence of a reducing end in polysaccharide chains allows for the synthesis of polysaccharide-based block copolymers. Compared with polysaccharide-based graft copolymers, the structure of block copolymers can be more precisely controlled. In this review, the synthesis methods of polysaccharide-based amphiphilic block copolymers are discussed in detail, taking into consideration the structural characteristics of polysaccharides. Various synthetic approaches, including reductive amination, oxime ligation, and other chain-end modification reactions, are explored. This review also focuses on the advantages of polysaccharides as hydrophilic blocks in polymeric nanocarriers. The structure and unique properties of different polysaccharides such as cellulose, hyaluronic acid, chitosan, alginate, and dextran are described along with examples of their applications as hydrophilic segments in the synthesis of amphiphilic copolymers to construct nanocarriers for sustained drug delivery.

Carboxymethylcellulose based self-healing hydrogel with coupled DOX as Camptothecin loading carrier for synergetic colon cancer treatment

The self-healing hydrogels have important applications in biomedication as drug release carrier. In this research, the Doxorubicin (DOX) was coupled onto oxidized carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) (CMC-Ald) to fabricate self-healing hydrogel with intrinsic antitumor property and loaded with Camptothecin (CPT) for synergetic antitumor treatment. The DOX coupled CMC-Ald (CMC-AD) was reacted with poly(aspartic hydrazide) (PAH) to fabricate injectable self-healing hydrogel. The coupled DOX avoided the burst release of the drug and the 100 % CPT loaded hydrogel could take the advantages of both drugs to enhance the synergetic antitumor therapeutic effect. The in vitro and in vivo results revealed the CPT loaded CMC-AD/PAH hydrogel showed enhanced antitumor property and reduced biotoxicity of the drugs. These properties demonstrate that the CMC-AD/PAH hydrogel has great application prospects in biomedication.

Supramolecular magnetonanohybrids for multimodal targeted therapy of triple-negative breast cancer cells

Despite the undeniable advances in recent decades, cancer remains one of the deadliest diseases of the current millennium, where the triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is very aggressive, extremely metastatic, and resistant to conventional chemotherapy. The nanotheranostic approach focusing on targeting membrane receptors often expressed at abnormal levels by cancer cells can be a strategic weapon for fighting malignant tumors. Herein, we introduced a novel "all-in-one nanosoldier" made of colloidal hybrid nanostructures, which were designed for simultaneously targeting, imaging, and killing TNBC cells. These nanohybrids comprised four distinct components: (a) superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles, as bi-functional nanomaterials for inducing ferroptosis via inorganic nanozyme-mediated catalysis and magnetotherapy by hyperthermia treatment; (b) carboxymethyl cellulose biopolymer, as a water-soluble capping macromolecule; (c) folic acid, as the membranotopic vector for targeting folate receptors; (d) and doxorubicin (DOX) drug for chemotherapy. The results demonstrated that this novel strategy was highly effective for targeting and killing TNBC cells in vitro, expressing high levels of folate membrane-receptors. The results evidenced that three integrated mechanisms triggered the deaths of the cancer cells in vitro: (a) ferroptosis, by magnetite nanoparticles inducing a Fenton-like reaction; (b) magneto-hyperthermia effect by generating heat under an alternate magnetic field; and (c) chemotherapy, through the DOX intracellular release causing DNA dysfunction. This "all-in-one nanosoldier" strategy offers a vast realm of prospective alternatives for attacking cancer cells, combining multimodal therapy and the delivery of therapeutic agents to diseased sites and preserving healthy cells, which is one of the most critical clinical challenges faced in fighting drug-resistant breast cancers.

Solvent-Free Synthesis of Amidated Carboxymethyl Cellulose Derivatives: Effect on the Thermal Properties

The present work explores the possibility of chemically modifying carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), a widely diffused commercial cellulose ether, by grafting of hydrophobic moieties. Amidation of CMC, at high temperature and in heterogeneous conditions, was selected as synthetic tool for grafting on CMC a panel of commercially available amines (bearing long aliphatic chains, alkyl aromatic and heteroaromatic groups, more or less spaced from the cellulose backbone). The reaction was successfully carried out in absence of solvents, catalysts and coupling agents, providing a promising and more sustainable alternative to conventional amidation procedures. Relationships between the chemical structure of the obtained CMC derivatives and their thermal properties were carefully studied, with a particular attention to the thermal behavior. Grafting of aromatic and heteroaromatic alkyl amines, presenting a linear alkyl chain between CMC backbone and a terminal bulky moiety, allowed for efficiently separating the polysaccharide chains, improving their mobility and resulting in a consequent lowering of the glass transition temperature (T_g). The T_g values obtained (90-147 °C) were found to be closely dependent on both the size of the aliphatic spacer, the structure of the aromatic ring and the extent of amidation.

Synthesis and characterization of novel carboxymethyl Assam Bora rice starch for the controlled release of cationic anticancer drug based on electrostatic interactions

Carboxymethyl Assam Bora rice starch (CM-ABRS) was chemically synthesized in non-aqueous medium with the optimum degree of substitution (DS) of 1.23, and physicochemically characterized by FT-IR, DSC, XRD, and SEM analysis. Comparative evaluation of CM-ABRS with native starch (ABRS) for powder flow characteristics, swelling index, apparent solubility, rheological properties, textural properties, and mucoadhesive studies were carried out. The aim of the current work was to investigate the potential of CM-ABRS as a novel carrier for the water-soluble chemotherapeutic, doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX). Formation of drug/polymer complex (DOX-CM-ABRS) via electrostatic interaction has been evaluated for the controlled release of DOX in three different pH media (phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), pH 7.4, 6.8, and 5.5). In vitro drug release studies illustrated faster release of drug in PBS at pH 5.5 as compared to pH 6.8 and pH 7.4, respectively, indicating the importance of pH-sensitive drug release from the DOX-CM-ABRS complex in malignant tissues.