Armamentarium of nanoscaled lipid drug delivery systems customized for oral administration: In silico docking patronage, absorption phenomenon, preclinical status, clinical status and future prospects

Experimental and Theoretical Insights on Chemopreventive Effect of the Liposomal Thymoquinone Against Benzo[a]pyrene-Induced Lung Cancer in Swiss Albino Mice

Purpose

Thymoquinone (TQ), a phytoconstituent of Nigella sativa seeds, has been studied extensively in various cancer models. However, TQ’s limited water solubility restricts its therapeutic applicability. Our work aims to prepare the novel formulation of TQ and assess its chemopreventive potential in chemically induced lung cancer animal model.

Methods

The polyethylene glycol coated DOPE/CHEMS incorporating TQ-loaded pH-sensitive liposomes (TQPSL) were prepared and characterized. Mice were exposed to benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) thrice a week for 4 weeks to induce lung cancer. TQPSL was administered three times a week for 21 weeks, starting 2 weeks before the first dose of BaP.

Results

The prepared TQPSL revealed 85% entrapment efficiency with 128 nm size and −19.5 mv ζ-potential showing high stability of the formulation. The pretreatment of TQPSL showed the recovery in BaP-modulated relative organ weight of lungs, cancer marker enzymes, and antioxidant enzymes in the serum. The histopathological analysis of the tissues showed that TQPSL protected the malignancy in the lungs. The flow cytometry data revealed the induction of apoptosis and decreased intracellular ROS by TQPSL. Molecular docking was performed to predict the TQ’s affinity for eight possible anticancer drug targets linked to lung cancer etiology. The data assisted to identify the serine/threonine-protein kinase BRAF as the most suitable target of TQ with binding energy −6.8 kcal/mol.

Conclusion

The current findings demonstrated the potential of TQPSL and its possible therapeutic targets of lung cancer. To our knowledge, this is the first research to outline the development of TQ formulation against lung cancer considering its low solubility as well as pulmonary delivery challenges.

Lipid-Based Nanoparticle Formulation of Diallyl Trisulfide Chemosensitizes the Growth Inhibitory Activity of Doxorubicin in Colorectal Cancer Model: A Novel In Vitro, In Vivo and In Silico Analysis

Garlic’s main bioactive organosulfur component, diallyl trisulfide (DATS), has been widely investigated in cancer models. However, DATS is not suitable for clinical use due to its low solubility. The current study seeks to improve DATS bioavailability and assess its chemopreventive and chemosensitizing properties in an AOM-induced colorectal cancer model. The polyethylene glycol coated Distearoylphosphatidylcholine/Cholesterol (DSPC/Chol) comprising DATS-loaded DATSL and doxorubicin (DOXO)-encapsulated DOXL liposomes was prepared and characterized. The changes in the sensitivity of DATS and DOXO by DATSL and DOXL were evaluated in RKO and HT-29 colon cancer cells. The synergistic effect of DATSL and DOXL was studied by cell proliferation assay in the combinations of IC₁₀, IC₂₅, and IC₃₅ of DATSL with the IC₁₀ of DOXL. AOM, DATSL, and DOXL were administered to different groups of mice for a period of 21 weeks. The data exhibited ~93% and ~46% entrapment efficiency of DATSL and DOXL, respectively. The size of sham liposomes was 110.5 nm, whereas DATSL and DOXL were 135.5 nm and 169 nm, respectively. DATSL and DOXL exhibited significant sensitivity in the cell proliferation experiment, lowering their IC₅₀ doses by more than 8- and 14-fold, respectively. However, the DATSL IC₁₀, IC₂₅, and IC₃₅ showed escalating chemosensitivity, and treated the cells in combination with DOXL IC₁₀. Analysis of histopathological, cancer marker enzymes, and antioxidant enzymes revealed that the high dose of DATSL pretreatment and DOXL chemotherapy is highly effective in inhibiting AOM-induced colon cancer promotion. The combination of DATSL and DOXL indicated promise as a colorectal cancer treatment in this study. Intermolecular interactions of DATS and DOXO against numerous cancer targets by molecular docking indicated MMP-9 as the most favourable target for DATS exhibiting binding energy of −4.6 kcal/mol. So far, this is the first research to demonstrate the chemopreventive as well as chemosensitizing potential of DATSL in an animal model of colorectal cancer.

Mechanistic studies on the absorption enhancement of a self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system loaded with norisoboldine-phospholipid complex

Background

Norisoboldine (NOR), the main isoquinoline alkaloid constituent in Radix Linderae, was demonstrated to have an outstanding anti-arthritis activity. However, a poor oral bioavailability of NOR creates a barrier for its development and application.

Methods

A new self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (SNEDDS) loaded with the phospholipid complex (PC) was designed to improve the oral bioavailability of NOR. NOR-PC was prepared by solvent evaporation method with a mixture of phospholipid and NOR at a mass ratio of 3:1. The property of PC is to improve the liposolubility of NOR, and made PC embedded in the drug delivery system. The physicochemical property of NOR-PC was characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). According to the ability to dissolve NOR-PC, the oil and cosurfactant were chosen. The surfactant was selected based on its emulsification efficiency in SNEDDS. Pseudo-ternary phase diagram was created to select the best formulation of NOR-PC-SNEDDS, and the pharmacokinetic parameters were detected in rats. In addition, intestinal lymphatic transport and liver microsome experiment were studied to gain insight into the mechanism for NOR-PC-SNEDDS increasing the oral bioavailability of NOR.

Results

Solubility detection showed that the PC significantly improved the liposolubility of NOR. NOR-PC-SNEDDS was prepared using NOR-PC, Ethyl oleate, Labrasol, Cremophor EL and transcutol HP at a weight ratio of 1:2:3.36:2.24:2.4 (w/w/w/w/w). The particle size and zeta potential of NOR-PC-SNEDDS were 36.72±1.47 nm and -4.91±0.49 mV after dilution with distilled water at a ratio of 1:50 (w/w). The absolute bioavailability of NOR in the NOR-PC-SNEDDS group significantly increased and the value was 372% in relative to NOR group. Further studies indicated that NOR-PC-SNEDDS promoted the oral bioavailability of NOR by enhancing intestinal lymphatic absorption and inhibiting Phase II metabolism of NOR.

Conclusion

These findings suggested that NOR-PC-SNEDDS was able to promote the oral bioavailability of NOR, which provided a foundation for the further development and application of NOR.

Role of nanostructures in improvising oral medicine

The most preferable mode of drugs administration is via the oral route but physiological barriers such as pH, enzymatic degradation etc. limit the absolute use of this route. Herein lies the importance of nanotechnology having a wide range of applications in the field of nano-medicine, particularly in drug delivery systems. The exclusive properties particularly small size and high surface area (which can be modified as required), exhibited by these nanoparticlesrender these structures more suitable for the purpose of drug delivery. Various nanostructures, like liposomes, dendrimers, mesoporous silica nanoparticles, etc. have been designed for the said purpose. These nanostructures have several advantages over traditional administration of medicine. Apart from overcoming the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics limitations of many potential therapeutic molecules, they may also be useful for advanced drug delivery purposes like targeted drug delivery, controlled release, enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect. In this review, we attempt to describe an up-to-date knowledge on various strategically devised nanostructures to overcome the problems related to oral drug administration.