N,N,N-Trimethyl chitosan nanoparticles for the delivery of monoclonal antibodies against hepatocellular carcinoma cells

Chitosan-based nanoscale delivery systems in hepatocellular carcinoma: Versatile bio-platform with theranostic application

The field of nanomedicine has provided a fresh approach to cancer treatment by addressing the limitations of current therapies and offering new perspectives on enhancing patients' prognoses and chances of survival. Chitosan (CS) is isolated from chitin that has been extensively utilized for surface modification and coating of nanocarriers to improve their biocompatibility, cytotoxicity against tumor cells, and stability. HCC is a prevalent kind of liver tumor that cannot be adequately treated with surgical resection in its advanced stages. Furthermore, the development of resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy has caused treatment failure. The targeted delivery of drugs and genes can be mediated by nanostructures in treatment of HCC. The current review focuses on the function of CS-based nanostructures in HCC therapy and discusses the newest advances of nanoparticle-mediated treatment of HCC. Nanostructures based on CS have the capacity to escalate the pharmacokinetic profile of both natural and synthetic drugs, thus improving the effectiveness of HCC therapy. Some experiments have displayed that CS nanoparticles can be deployed to co-deliver drugs to disrupt tumorigenesis in a synergistic way. Moreover, the cationic nature of CS makes it a favorable nanocarrier for delivery of genes and plasmids. The use of CS-based nanostructures can be harnessed for phototherapy. Additionally, the incur poration of ligands including arginylglycylaspartic acid (RGD) into CS can elevate the targeted delivery of drugs to HCC cells. Interestingly, smart CS-based nanostructures, including ROS- and pH-sensitive nanoparticles, have been designed to provide cargo release at the tumor site and enhance the potential for HCC suppression.

Quaternization of high molecular weight chitosan for increasing intestinal drug absorption using Caco-2 cells as an in vitro intestinal model

Potential use of a quaternized chitosan (MW 600 kDa) with 65% of 3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyltrimethylammonium (600-HPTChC₆₅) as an absorptive enhancer was investigated in Caco-2 monolayers. 600-HPTChC₆₅ (0.005% w/v) quickly reduced transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) to the maximum level in 40 min with full recovery within 6 h after removal. Its TEER reduction was corresponded to increased FD4 transport across the monolayers and disrupted localization of tight junction proteins ZO-1 and occludin at the cell borders. 600-HPTChC₆₅ was densely localized at the membrane surface and intercellular junctions. This chitosan (0.08-0.32% w/v) reduced the efflux ratio of [³H]-digoxin by 1.7- 2 folds, suggesting an increased [³H]-digoxin transport across the monolayers. Its binding with P-gp on Caco-2 monolayer increased the signal of fluorescence-labeled anti-P-gp (UIC2) reactivity due to conformational change. 600-HPTChC₆₅ (0.32% w/v) had no effect on P-gp expression in the Caco-2 monolayers. These results suggest that 600-HPTChC₆₅ could enhance drug absorption through tight junction opening and decreased P-gp function. Its interaction with the absorptive barrier mainly resulted in disrupting ZO-1 and occludin organization as well as changing in P-gp conformation.

A New Amphotericin B-loaded Trimethyl Chitosan Nanoparticles as a Drug Delivery System and Antifungal Activity on Candida albicans Biofilm

Amphotericin B (AmB) is an effective antifungal agent; however, the application of AmB is associated with a number of drawbacks. Application of nanoparticles (NPs) is known to improve the efficiency of drug delivery to the target tissues, compared to the traditional methods. In this study, a novel method of NPs preparation was developed. The trimethyl chitosan (TMC) was synthesized using low molecular weight chitosan and was used for the preparation of TMC-NPs through ionic gelation method. Afterward, AmB-loaded TMC-NPs (TMC-NPs/AmB) were prepared and their drug delivery potential was testes. The TMC-NPs and TMC-NPs/AmB were characterized for their structure, particle size, Zeta potential, polydispersity index, morphology, loading efficiency, loading capacity, in vitro release profile, release kinetic, and entrapped AmB potency. The cytotoxicity and antifungal activity of TMC-NPs/AmB against Candida albicans biofilm were evaluated. The quaternization of TMC was estimated to be 36.4%. The mean particle size of TMC-NPs and TMC NPs/AmB were 210±15 and 365±10 nm, respectively, with a PDI of 0.30 and 0.4, ZP of +34±0.5 and +28±0.5 mV, respectively. Electron microscopy analysis indicated uniform spherical shapes with smooth surfaces. The TMC-NPs/AmB indicated LE of 76% and LC of 74.04 % with a potency of 110%. The release profile of TMC-NPs/AmB was best explained by the Higuchi model. The initial release after 10 h was obtained at 38%, and the rates of release after 36 and 84 h were determined at 67% and 76% respectively, which was significantly different (P<0.05) from previous time points. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) (50%) of NPs/AmB and AmB were 0.65 and 1.75 μg/mL, and the MIC 80% were determined at 1.95 and 7.75 μg/mL, respectively, demonstrating a significant improvement in antifungal activity. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration for TMC-NPs/AmB and AmB were estimated at 86 and 105 μg/mL, respectively, indicating a significant reduction in cytotoxicity and the adverse effect. This study could successfully introduce a practical method to synthesize TMC-NPs. The encapsulation process was efficient and significantly improved the antifungal activity of AmB. The developed method can be applied to improve the feasibility of oral delivery while reducing the adverse effects associated with traditional methods.

Biomimetic Nucleation of Metal-Organic Frameworks on Silk Fibroin Nanoparticles for Designing Core-Shell-Structured pH-Responsive Anticancer Drug Carriers

Silk fibroin (SF) is a biomacromolecule that can be assembled into nanostructures and induce biomimetic nucleation of inorganic materials. Zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8), a metal-organic framework (MOF), can be dissolved selectively under acidic pH. Here, we integrated SF and ZIF-8 to develop novel drug carriers that selectively release drug in the acidic intracellular environment of cancer cells. Specifically, SF was assembled into nanoparticles (SF-NPs), which were then loaded with an antitumor drug, doxorubicin (DOX), to form DSF-NPs. Due to the SF-mediated organization of ZIF-8 precursors such as zinc ions, the DSF-NPs further templated the nucleation of ZIF-8 onto their surface to generate core-shell-structured NPs (termed DSF@Z-NPs) with ZIF-8 as a shell and DSF-NP as a core. We found that the DSF@Z-NPs, highly stable under neutral conditions, could be uptaken by breast cancer cells, release DOX selectively owing to dissolution of ZIF-8 shells in the acidic intracellular environment in a controlled manner, and induce cell apoptosis. We also confirmed that the DSF@Z-NPs could inhibit tumor growth more efficiently to reach a higher survival rate than their controls by inducing cell apoptosis in vivo. Our study suggests that SF and MOF could be combined to design a new type of cancer therapeutics.

Does polysaccharide quaternization improve biological activity?

The natural polysaccharides, due to their structural diversity, commonly present very distinct solubility and physical chemical properties and additionally have intrinsic biological activities that, gene-rally, reveal themselves in a light way. The chemical modification of the molecular structure can improve these parameters. In this review, original articles that approached the quaternization of polysaccharides for purposes of biological application were selected, without limitation of year of publication, in the databases Scopus, Web of Science and PubMed. The results obtained from the bibliographic survey indicate that the increase in positive charges caused by quaternization improves the interaction between modified polysaccharides and structures that have negative charges on their surface, such as the cell wall of microorganisms and some cells in the human body, such as the DNA. This greater interaction is reflected as an increase in the biological activity of all polysaccharides broached in this study. Another important data obtained was the fact that the chemical changes did not affect or irrelevantly affect the toxicity of almost all of the polysaccharides that were quaternized. Therefore, polysaccharide quaternization is a safe and effective way to obtain improvements in the biological behavior of these macromolecules.

Recent updates in the polysaccharides-based Nano-biocarriers for drugs delivery and its application in diseases treatment: A review

With people's increasing awareness of diseases treatment, the researchers began to focus on drug delivery to the exact site of action at the optimal rate. Some researchers have proved that many nanostructures loaded with drugs are significantly better than conventional nanostructures. However, the materials from which the nanostructure determines its performance. To use it as a pharmaceutical ingredient, it must meet strict safety regulatory standards worldwide. Therefore, people's attention has paid to easily available natural substances. As far as we know, bioactive polysaccharides are excellent candidates for realizing these purposes. To be precise, due to the natural availability of polysaccharides, it has been widely used in the research of Nano-biocarriers loaded with drugs. Based on the above analysis, the nanomaterials developed through the laboratory have great potential for upgrading to market products. Therefore, it is of great significance to review the latest progress of polysaccharide-based Nano-biocarriers in drug delivery and their application in diseases treatment. In this work, we focused on the preparation of polysaccharides-based Nano-biocarriers, commonly used polysaccharides for preparing Nano-biocarriers, and drugs loaded on polysaccharides-based Nano-biocarriers to treat diseases. Shortly, polysaccharide-based Nano-biocarriers will be increasingly used in drug delivery and treatment of diseases.

Potential and Applications of Nanocarriers for Efficient Delivery of Biopharmaceuticals

During the past two decades, the clinical use of biopharmaceutical products has markedly increased because of their obvious advantages over conventional small-molecule drug products. These advantages include better specificity, potency, targeting abilities, and reduced side effects. Despite the substantial clinical and commercial success, the macromolecular structure and intrinsic instability of biopharmaceuticals make their formulation and administration challenging and render parenteral delivery as the only viable option in most cases. The use of nanocarriers for efficient delivery of biopharmaceuticals is essential due to their practical benefits such as protecting from degradation in a hostile physiological environment, enhancing plasma half-life and retention time, facilitating absorption through the epithelium, providing site-specific delivery, and improving access to intracellular targets. In the current review, we highlight the clinical and commercial success of biopharmaceuticals and the overall applications and potential of nanocarriers in biopharmaceuticals delivery. Effective applications of nanocarriers for biopharmaceuticals delivery via invasive and noninvasive routes (oral, pulmonary, nasal, and skin) are presented here. The presented data undoubtedly demonstrate the great potential of combining nanocarriers with biopharmaceuticals to improve healthcare products in the future clinical landscape. In conclusion, nanocarriers are promising delivery tool for the hormones, cytokines, nucleic acids, vaccines, antibodies, enzymes, and gene- and cell-based therapeutics for the treatment of multiple pathological conditions.

Chitosan Nanoparticles for Therapy and Theranostics of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) and Liver-Targeting

Chitosan nanoparticles are well-known delivery systems widely used as polymeric carriers in the field of nanomedicine. Chitosan is a carbohydrate of natural origin: it is a biodegradable, biocompatible, mucoadhesive, polycationic polymer and it is endowed with penetration enhancer properties. Furthermore, it can be easily derivatized. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) represents a remarkable health problem because current therapies, that include surgery, liver transplantation, trans-arterial embolization, chemoembolization and chemotherapy, present significant limitations due to the high risk of recurrence, to a lack of drug selectivity and to other serious side effects. Therefore, there is the need for new therapeutic strategies and for improving the liver-targeting to HCC. Nanomedicine consists in the use of nanoscale carriers as delivery systems to target and deliver drugs and/or diagnostic agents to specific organs or tissues. Chitosan and its derivatives can be successfully used in the preparation of nanoparticles that, for their peculiar surface-properties, can specifically interact with liver tumor, by passive and active targeting. This review concerns the use of chitosan nanoparticles for the therapy and theranostics of HCC and liver-targeting.

Efficiency of resveratrol-loaded sericin nanoparticles: Promising bionanocarriers for drug delivery

Sericin protein nanoparticles are a biocompatible, bio-viable class of nanocarriers gaining prominence in drug delivery system. This research aimed to investigate the suitability fabrication of silk protein (SP) nanoparticles for loading with resveratrol (RSV) via a solventless precipitation technique. The addition of 0.5% (w/v) pluronic surfactant proved optimal for SP nanoparticle fabrication, with obtained nanoparticles being spherical, mono-dispersed and having mean size of approximately 200-400 nm. All exhibited negative surface charges, the extent of which being dependent on the SP concentration, and were non-toxic to normal skin fibroblasts (CRL-2522). Loading of RSV, a promising which poorly soluble multi-targeted anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory natural polyphenol, into SP nanoparticles proved feasible, with encapsulation levels of 71-75% for 0.6% and 1.0% (w/v) nanoparticle formulations, respectively. Resveratrol-loaded SP nanoparticles strongly inhibited growth of colorectal adenocarcinoma (Caco-2) cells although proved non-cytotoxic to skin fibroblasts, as indicated by cell viability assays. Cellular internalization of SP nanoparticles proved facile and dependent on incubation time; transfection of these carriers, in vitro results indicating sustained release of RSV (over 72 h), and drug solubility enhancements on encapsulation highlight their potential in therapeutic and pharmaceutical applications. Thus, SP nanoparticles is a promising approach to be potential bio-nanocarrier for drug delivery system.

Ultrathin Covalently Bound Organic Layers on Mica: Formation of Atomically Flat Biofunctionalizable Surfaces

Mica is the substrate of choice for microscopic visualization of a wide variety of intricate nanostructures. Unfortunately, the lack of a facile strategy for its modification has prevented the on-mica assembly of nanostructures. Herein, we disclose a convenient catechol-based linker that enables various surface-bound metal-free click reactions, and an easy modification of mica with DNA nanostructures and a horseradish peroxidase mimicking hemin/G-quadruplex DNAzyme.

Characterization of a new monoclonal anti-glypican-3 antibody specific to the hepatocellular carcinoma cell line, HepG2

AIM

To characterize the antigen on HepG2 cell that is specifically recognized by a new monoclonal antibody raised against human liver heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG), clone 1E4-1D9.

METHODS

The antigen recognized by mAb 1E4-1D9 was immunoprecipitated and its amino acid sequence was analyzed LC/MS. The transmembrane domain, number of cysteine residues, and glycosylation sites were predicted from these entire sequences. Data from amino acid analysis was aligned with glypican-3 (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/msa/clustalo/). The competitive reaction of mAb 1E4-1D9 and anti-glypican-3 on HepG2 cells was demonstrated by indirect immunofluorescence and analyzed by flow cytometry. Moreover, co-immunoprecipitation of mAb 1E4-1D9 and anti-glypican-3 was performed in HepG2 cells by Western immunoblotting. The recognition by mAb 1E4-1D9 of a specific epitope on solid tumor and hematopoietic cell lines was studied using indirect immunofluorescence and analyzed by flow cytometry.

RESULTS

Monoclonal antibody 1E4-1D9 reacted with an HSPG isolated from human liver and a band of 67 kD was detected under both reducing and non-reducing conditions. The specific antigen pulled down by mAb 1E4-1D9, having a MW of 135 kD, was analyzed. The results showed two sequences of interest, gi30722350 (1478 amino acid) and gi60219551 (1378 amino acid). In both sequences no transmembrane regions were observed. Sequence number gi30722350 was 99.7% showed a match to FYCO1, a molecule involved in induction of autophagy. Sequence number gi60219551 contained 15 cysteines and 11 putative glycosylation sites with 6 predicted N-glycosylation sites. It was also matched with all PDZ domain proteins. Moreover, it showed an 85.7% match to glypican-3. Glypican-3 on HepG2 cells competitively reacted with both phycoerythrin-conjugated anti-glypican-3 and mAb 1E4-1C2 and resulted in an increase of double-stained cell population when higher concentration of mAb 1E4-1D9 was used. Moreover, antigens precipitated from HepG2 cell by anti-glypican-3 could be detected by mAb 1E4-1D9 and vice versa. The recognition of antigens, on other solid tumor cell lines, by mAb 1E4-1D9 was studied. The results demonstrated that mAb 1E4-1D9 reacted with Huh7, HepG2, HT29, MCF7, SW620, Caco2, B16F1, U937, K562 and Molt4 cells. It was also found to be weakly positive to SW1353 and HL60 and negative to H460 and Hela cell lines.

CONCLUSION

All findings show that mAb 1E4-1D9 specifically recognizes glypican-3. Moreover, a new partner molecule of glypican-3, FYCO1 is proposed based on the results from co-precipitation studies.

Efficient induction of antimicrobial activity with vancomycin nanoparticle-loaded poly(trimethylene carbonate) localized drug delivery system

Surgery and the local placement of an antibiotic are the predominant therapies to treat chronic osteomyelitis. Vancomycin-loaded N-trimethyl chitosan nanoparticles (VCM/TMC NPs) as a potential drug delivery system have high intracellular penetration and effective intracellular antibacterial activity. This study investigated the effects of a biocompatible material, poly(trimethylene carbonate) (PTMC), to increase the sustained effectiveness of an intracellular antibiotic and its potential application in antibiotic delivery. VCM/TMC NP-PTMC was characterized using scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to determine the morphology, stability and chemical interaction of the drug with the polymer. Further, the biodegradation, antibacterial activity, protein adsorption, cell proliferation and drug release characteristics were evaluated. In addition, a Staphylococcus aureus-induced osteomyelitis rabbit model was used to investigate the antibiotic activity and bone repair capability of VCM/TMC NP-PTMC. The results showed that the composite beads of VCM/TMC NPs followed a sustained and slow release pattern and had excellent antibacterial activity and a higher protein adsorption and cell proliferation rate than the VCM-PTMC in vitro. Furthermore, VCM/TMC NP-PTMC inhibits bacteria and promotes bone repair in vivo. Thus, VCM/TMC NP-PTMC might be beneficial in periodontal management to reduce the bacterial load at the infection site and promote bone repair.

Signal amplification strategy using gold/N-trimethyl chitosan/iron oxide magnetic composite nanoparticles as a tracer tag for high-sensitive electrochemical detection

This study presents a novel signal amplification method for high-sensitive electrochemical immunosensing. Gold (Au)/N-trimethyl chitosan (TMC)/iron oxide (Fe3O4) (shell/shell/core) nanocomposite was used as a tracing tag to label antibody. The tag was shown to be capable of amplifying the recognition signal by high-density assembly of Au nanoparticles (NPs) on TMC/Fe3O4 particles. The remarkable conductivity of AuNPs provides a feasible pathway for electron transfer. The method was found to be simple, reliable and capable of high-sensitive detection of human serum albumin as a model, down to 0.2 pg/ml in the range of 0.25-1000 pg/ml. Findings of the present study would create new opportunities for sensitive and rapid detection of various analytes.

Controlled synthesis of N,N,N-trimethyl chitosan for modulated bioadhesion and nasal membrane permeability

In an experiment to explore the bioadhesion, biocompatibility, and membrane permeation properties, the controlled synthesis of N,N,N-trimethyl chitosan (TMC) was carried out by two-step reductive methylation of chitosan (CHT). Methylation was confirmed by (1)H NMR (δ=3.1 ppm) and FTIR analysis (CH stretch at 1,485 cm(-1)). The TMC was further characterized by DSC, TGA, XRD, HR-TEM, SEM, and elemental analysis. Findings revealed improved solubility, enhanced viscosity, increased swelling index and higher molecular weight of TMC over CHT. Comparative evaluation validated increased bioadhesion potential, and improved ex vivo biocompatibility of TMC compared to CHT. Increased bioadhesion of TMC NPs over CHT NPs can be attributed to the strong electrostatic interactions between cationic amino groups with anionic sialic and sulfonic acid moieties contained in the mucin of the nasal mucus. Ex vivo biocompatibility studies suggested that the NP formulations of both biopolymers were biocompatible and could be applied safely on the nasal epithelium. Ex vivo permeation studies executed on excised cattle nasal mucosa illustrated improved permeability of TMC NPs over CHT NPs. In the author's opinion, two-step reductive methylation of CHT could be an attractive strategy to improve its solubility, bioadhesion, and permeation characteristics without affecting biocompatibility across the mucosal surfaces.

Positively and negatively surface-charged chondroitin sulfate-trimethylchitosan nanoparticles as protein carriers

Positively and negatively surface-charged nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared with chondroitin sulfate (ChS) and trimethylchitosan (TMC). NP size, surface charge, formation yield, and water content were investigated as a function of weight ratio and concentration. Size and zeta potential were controlled by varying the ChS/TMC mass ratio. FTIR spectra revealed interactions among composite NP constituents. TEM images showed that the NPs were nearly spherical, with an average size of ∼ 300 nm. Encapsulation efficiency increased in positively charged NPs with increases in fluorescein isothiocyanate-bovine serum albumin concentration. Negatively charged NPs had only 10-20% encapsulation efficiency. The release profile, release kinetics and mechanism of positively charged ChS-TMC NPs were studied in vitro. NP cytocompatibility and uptake were verified ex vivo. Both types of NPs were taken up and retained in cells. A549 cells took up more positively charged (49.4%) than negatively charged (35.5%) NPs.

Synthesis, characterization and in vitro biocompatibility study of Au/TMC/Fe3O4 nanocomposites as a promising, nontoxic system for biomedical applications

The unique properties and applications of iron oxide and Au nanoparticles have motivated researchers to synthesize and optimize a combined nanocomposite containing both. By using various polymers such as chitosan, some of the problems of classic core-shell structures (such as reduced saturation magnetization and thick coating) have been overcome. In the present study, chitosan and one of its well-known derivatives, N-trimethylchitosan (TMC), were applied to construct three-layer nanocomposites in an Au/polymer/Fe3O4 system. It was demonstrated that replacement of chitosan with TMC reasonably improved the properties of the final nanocomposites including their size, magnetic behavior and thermal stability. Moreover, the results of the MTT assay showed no significant cytotoxicity effect when the Au/TMC/Fe3O4 nanocomposites were applied in vitro. These TMC-containing magnetic nanoparticles are well-coated by Au nanoparticles and have good biocompatibility and can thus play the role of a platform or a label in various fields of application, especially the biomedical sciences and biosensors.

Polysaccharide-based nanocomposites and their applications

Polysaccharide nanocomposites have become increasingly important materials over the past decade. Polysaccharides offer a green alternative to synthetic polymers in the preparation of soft nanomaterials. They have also been used in composites with hard nanomaterials, such as metal nanoparticles and carbon-based nanomaterials. This mini review describes methods for polysaccharide nanocomposite preparation and reviews the various types and diverse applications for these novel materials.

N-trimethyl chitosan nanoparticle-encapsulated lactosyl-norcantharidin for liver cancer therapy with high targeting efficacy

N-Trimethyl chitosan (TMC) was synthesized and used to prepare lactosyl-norcantharidin TMC nanoparticles (Lac-NCTD-TMC-NPs) using an ionic cross-linkage process. Lac-NCTD-TMC-NPs with an average particle size of 120.6 ± 1.7 nm were obtained, with an entrapment efficiency of 69.29% ± 0.76%, and a drug-loading amount of 9.1% ± 0.07%. The release of Lac-NCTD-TMC-NPs in vitro was investigated through a dialysis method, and its sustained effect was evident. In the human liver cancer cell line HepG2, the half-maximum inhibiting concentration (IC(50)) of TMC-encapsulated Lac-NCTD (Lac-NCTD-TMC-NPs) was only 24.2% that of free Lac-NCTD at 24 hours. Lac-NCTD induced HepG2 cell death by triggering apoptosis. In vitro cellular uptake and in vivo NIR fluorescence real-time imaging both indicated a high targeting efficacy. In comparison with Lac-NCTD and Lac-NCTD chitosan NPs (Lac-NCTD-CS-NPs ), Lac-NCTD-TMC-NPs had the strongest antitumor activity on the murine hepatocarcinoma 22 subcutaneous model.

FROM THE CLINICAL EDITOR

In this article the preparation of N-trimethyl chitosan-encapsulated lactosyl-norcantharidin nanoparticles is described that displayed efficient targeting and sustained release in a hepatocarcinoma SC murine model.

Quaternary Salts of Chitosan: History, Antimicrobial Features, and Prospects

Recently, increasing attention has been paid to water-soluble derivatives of chitosan at its applications. The chemical characteristics and the antimicrobial properties of these salts can play significant role in pharmacological and food areas mainly as carriers for drug delivery systems and as antimicrobial packaging materials. In the current paper, a historical sequence of the main preparative methods, physical chemistry aspects, and antimicrobial activity of chitosan quaternized derivatives are presented and briefly discussed. In general, the results indicated that the quaternary derivatives had better inhibitory effects than the unmodified chitosan.