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Liu R, Zhang Z, Liu L, Li X, Duan R, Ren Y, Du B, Zhang Q, Zhou Z. The effects of stiffness on the specificity and avidity of antibody-coated microcapsules with target cells are strongly shape dependent. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2024; 234:113752. [PMID: 38219638 DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2024.113752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2023] [Revised: 12/29/2023] [Accepted: 01/07/2024] [Indexed: 01/16/2024]
Abstract
Antibody modification is a common method for endowing drug carriers with the ability to target specific cells. Recent studies suggest that the efficacy of these antibody-modified drug carriers is closely related to their physicochemical properties, such as size, shape, stiffness, charge, and surface chemistry. In this study, we functionalized microcapsules with antibodies to investigate the combined effect of shape and stiffness on their targeting ability. We synthesized hollow microcapsules, both spherical and rod-shaped, with adjustable stiffness using calcium carbonate particles as templates and silk fibroin (SF) as the shell material. These microcapsules were then functionalized with trastuzumab (TTZ) to enhance targeting capabilities. Our analysis revealed that increasing stiffness significantly improved the specificity and avidity of TTZ-coated rod-shaped microcapsules, but not spherical ones, indicating a strong shape-dependent influence of stiffness on these properties. Additionally, we explored the mechanisms of endocytosis using various inhibitors and found that both macropinocytosis and clathrin played critical roles in the cellular uptake of microcapsules. Furthermore, we loaded microcapsules with doxorubicin (DOX) to evaluate their anti-tumor efficacy. The stiffest TTZ-coated, DOX-loaded rod-shaped microcapsules demonstrated the most potent anti-tumor effects on BT-474 cells and the highest uptake in BT-474 3D spheroids. This research contributes to the development of more effective microcapsule-based target delivery systems and the realization of the full potential of microcapsule drug delivery systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Liu
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Zhe Zhang
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Technologies Enabling Development of Clinical Therapeutics and Diagnostics, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences; Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Diseases (Ministry of Education), Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China
| | - Lingrong Liu
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Xuemin Li
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Ruiping Duan
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Ying Ren
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Bo Du
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China.
| | - Qiqing Zhang
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China; Fujian Bote Biotechnology Co. Ltd, Fuzhou, Fujian 350013, China; Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen People's Hospital (The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology), Shenzhen 518020, Guangdong, China.
| | - Zhimin Zhou
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Biomedical Barriers Research Center, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300192, China
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