Development of a Subcellular Semimechanism-Based Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Model to Characterize Paclitaxel Effects Delivered by Polymeric Micelles

Pharmacokinetic behaviors of soft nanoparticulate formulations of chemotherapeutics

Chemotherapeutic treatment with conventional drug formulations pose numerous challenges, such as poor solubility, high cytotoxicity and serious off-target side effects, low bioavailability, and ultimately subtherapeutic tumoral concentration leading to poor therapeutic outcomes. In the field of Nanomedicine, advances in nanotechnology have been applied with great success to design and develop novel nanoparticle-based formulations for the treatment of various types of cancer. The approval of the first nanomedicine, Doxil® (liposomal doxorubicin) in 1995, paved the path for further development for various types of novel delivery platforms. Several different types of nanoparticles, especially organic (soft) nanoparticles (liposomes, polymeric micelles, and albumin-bound nanoparticles), have been developed and approved for several anticancer drugs. Nanoparticulate drug delivery platform have facilitated to overcome of these challenges and offered key advantages of improved bioavailability, higher intra-tumoral concentration of the drug, reduced toxicity, and improved efficacy. This review introduces various commonly used nanoparticulate systems in biomedical research and their pharmacokinetic (PK) attributes, then focuses on the various physicochemical and physiological factors affecting the in vivo disposition of chemotherapeutic agents encapsulated in nanoparticles in recent years. Further, it provides a review of the current landscape of soft nanoparticulate formulations for the two most widely investigated anticancer drugs, paclitaxel, and doxorubicin, that are either approved or under investigation. Formulation details, PK profiles, and therapeutic outcomes of these novel strategies have been discussed individually and in comparison, to traditional formulations. This article is categorized under: Nanotechnology Approaches to Biology > Cells at the Nanoscale Diagnostic Tools > In Vivo Nanodiagnostics and Imaging Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease.

Nanomedicine-based combination of dexamethasone palmitate and MCL-1 siRNA for synergistic therapeutic efficacy against rheumatoid arthritis

The main aim of this research was to design a MCL-1 siRNA and dexamethasone (DEX)-loaded folate modified poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA)-based polymeric micelles with an eventual goal to improve the therapeutic outcome in the rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Polymeric micelles encapsulating the MCL-1 siRNA and DEX was successfully developed and observed to be stable. Physicochemical characteristics such as particle size and particle morphology were ideal for the systemic administration. Folate-conjugated DEX/siRNA-loaded polymeric micelles (DS-FPM) significantly lowered the MCL-1 mRNA expression compared to either DEX/siRNA-loaded polymeric micelles (DS-PM) or free siRNA in Raw264.7 cells and macrophage cells suggesting the importance of targeted nanocarriers. Most importantly, DS-FPM exhibited a greatest decrease in the hind paw volume with lowest clinical score compared to any other treated group indicating a superior anti-inflammatory activity. DS-FPM showed significantly lower levels of the TNF-α and IL-1β compared to AIA model and free groups. The folate receptor (FR)-targeting property of DS-FPM has been demonstrated to be a promising delivery platform for the effective delivery of combination therapeutics (siRNA and DEX) toward the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

Nanotopography as Artificial Microenvironment for Accurate Visualization of Metastasis Development via Simulation of ECM Dynamics

Metastatic progression is mediated by complex interactions between deregulated extracellular matrix (ECM) and cancer cells and remains a major challenge in cancer management. To investigate the role of ECM dynamics in promoting metastasis development, we developed an artificial microenvironment (AME) platform comprised of nanodot arrays of increasing diameter. Cells cultured on the platform showed increasing signs of mesenchymal-like cell transition as AME diameter increased, suggesting accurate simulation of ECM-mediated gene regulation. Gene expression was analyzed to determine genes significant to transition, which were then used to select appropriate small molecule drugs for time course treatments. Our results suggest that the platform can identify critical target genes as well as possible drug candidates. Overall, the AME platform allows for the study of intricate ECM-induced gene expression trends across metastasis development that would otherwise be difficult to visualize in vivo and may open new avenues toward successful personalized cancer management.

Evaluating Inhibitory Effects of Paclitaxel and Vitamin D3 Loaded Poly Lactic Glycolic Acid Co-Delivery Nanoparticles on the Breast Cancer Cell Line

Purpose: Paclitaxel (PTX) has transpired as a significant agent in the treatment of breast cancer. Meanwhile, polylactic glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) are able to increase the anticancer effect of the PTX in the blood.

Methods: Nano-precipitation was used to prepare the PLGA-PTX-VitD3 co-delivery NPs. Drug loading, encapsulation efficiency, in vitro release profile, cell viability, migration, apoptosis, and bcl2 expression of NPs were evaluated.

Results: The average size of co-delivery NPs was 231 ± 46 nm. Observed was a controlled release of the PTX and vitamin D3 from co-delivery NPs between 0.5 and 240 hours. MTT showed the ability of 8 μg.mL-1 of co-delivery NPs to kill 50 % of the MCF-7; likewise, the co-delivery NPs prevented MCF-7 migration. The co-delivery NPs led 46.35 % MCF-7 to enter primary apoptosis. 60.8% of MCF-7 in the control group were able to enter the G (1) phase of the cell cycle. The co-delivery NPs increased expression of bax. In addition to its higher toxicity against MCF-7 than that of PTX, co-delivery NPs were able to release drugs continuously for a long period, which indeed increased the efficiency of the drugs.

Conclusion: The effect of co-delivery NPs on MCF-7 cell viability was different from that in other drugs. In fact, the co-deliver NPs were able to release drugs continuously for a long time, this could induce primary apoptosis in the MCF-7 and decrease the metastasis and toxicity of drugs.