Oral Delivery of Gambogenic Acid by Functional Polydopamine Nanoparticles for Targeted Tumor Therapy

Ultra-pH-sensitive nanoparticle of gambogenic acid for tumor targeting therapy via anti-vascular strategy plus immunotherapy

Although the combination of anti-vascular strategy plus immunotherapy has emerged as the optimal first-line treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma, lack of tumor targeting leads to low antitumor efficacy and serious side effect. Here, we report an ultra-pH-sensitive nanoparticle of gambogenic acid (GNA) encapsulated by poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(2-azepane ethyl methacrylate) (PEG-PAEMA) for tumor-targeting combined therapy of anti-vascular strategy plus immunotherapy. PEG-PAEMA-GNA nanoparticle was quite stable at pH 7.4 for 30 d. In contrast, it exerted size shrinkage, charge reversal and the release of GNA at pH 6.7 within 24 h. Moreover, PEG-PAEMA-GNA significantly enhanced the anti-vascular activity, membrane-disruptive capability and pro-apoptosis when pH changed from 7.4 to 6.7. Western blot analysis exhibits that PEG-PAEMA and its GNA nanoparticle facilitated the phosphorylation of STING protein. In vivo assays show that PEG-PAEMA-GNA not only displayed much higher tumor inhibition of 92 % than 37 % of free GNA, but also inhibited tumor vasculature, promoted the maturation of dendritic cells and recruited more cytotoxic t-lymphocytes for sufficient anti-vascular therapy and immunotherapy. All these results demonstrate that PEG-PAEMA-GNA displayed tumor-targeting combined treatment of anti-vascular therapy and immunotherapy. This study offers a simple and novel method for the combination of anti-vascular therapy and immunotherapy with high selectivity towards tumor.

Targeted pH-responsive delivery of rosmarinic acid via phenylboronic acid functionalized mesoporous silica nanoparticles for liver and lung cancer therapy

Currently, chemotherapy is one of the most practiced approaches for the treatment of cancers. However, existing chemotherapeutic drugs have poor aqueous solubility, poor selectivity, higher systematic toxicity, and poor target accumulation. In this study, we designed and synthesized a boronic acid/ester-based pH-responsive nano-valve that specifically targets the microenvironment in cancer cells. The nano-valve comprises phenylboronic acid-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles (B-MSN) loaded with polyphenolic compound Rosmarinic acid (ROS-B-MSN). The nano-valve was further coated with lignin (LIG) to achieve our desired LIG-ROS-BMSN nano-valve for targeted chemotherapy against Hep-G2 and NCI-H460 cell lines. The structure and properties of NPs were characterized by Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) in combination with EDX, and Dynamic light scattering (DLS). The outcomes revealed that the designed LIG-ROS-BMSN were in the nanorange (144.1 ± 0.70 nm), had negative Zeta potential (-15.7 ± 0.46 mV) and had a nearly spherical morphology. In vitro, drug release investigations showed a controlled pH-dependent release profile under mild acidic conditions that could enhance the targeted chemotherapeutic response against cancer in mild acidic environments. The obtained LIG-ROS-BMSN nano valve achieved significantly lower IC50 values of (1.70 ± 0.01 μg/mL and 3.25 ± 0.14 μg/mL) against Hep-G2 and NCI-H460 cell lines as compared to ROS alone, which was (14.0 ± 0.7 μg/mL and 29.10 ± 0.25 μg/mL), respectively. The cellular morphology before and after treatment was further confirmed via inverted microscopy. The outcomes of the current study imply that our designed LIG-ROS-BMSN nanovalve is a potential carrier for cancer chemotherapeutics.

Unveiling Gambogenic Acid as a Promising Antitumor Compound: A Review

Gambogenic acid is a derivative of gambogic acid, a polyprenylated xanthone isolated from Garcinia hanburyi. Compared with the more widely studied gambogic acid, gambogenic acid has demonstrated advantages such as a more potent antitumor effect and less systemic toxicity than gambogic acid according to early investigations. Therefore, the present review summarizes the effectiveness and mechanisms of gambogenic acid in different cancers and highlights the mechanisms of action. In addition, drug delivery systems to improve the bioavailability of gambogenic acid and its pharmacokinetic profile are included. Gambogenic acid has been applied to treat a wide range of cancers, such as lung, liver, colorectal, breast, gastric, bladder, and prostate cancers. Gambogenic acid exerts its antitumor effects as a novel class of enhancer of zeste homolog 2 inhibitors. It prevents cancer cell proliferation by inducing apoptosis, ferroptosis, and necroptosis and controlling the cell cycle as well as autophagy. Gambogenic acid also hinders tumor cell invasion and metastasis by downregulating metastasis-related proteins. Moreover, gambogenic acid increases the sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapy and has shown effects on multidrug resistance in malignancy. This review adds insights for the prevention and treatment of cancers using gambogenic acid.

An oral bioactive chitosan-decorated doxorubicin nanoparticles/bacteria bioconjugates enhance chemotherapy efficacy in an in-situ breast cancer model

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women worldwide. Despite significant advancements in chemotherapy, its effectiveness is often limited by poor drug distribution and systemic toxicity caused by the weak targeting ability of conventional therapeutic agents. The hypoxic tumor microenvironment (TME) also plays a vital role in treatment outcomes. Oral anticancer therapeutic agents have gained popularity and show promising results due to their ease of repeated administration. This study introduces autopilot biohybrids (Bif@BDC-NPs) for the effective delivery of doxorubicin (DOX) to the tumor site. This hybrid combines albumin-encapsulated DOX nanoparticles (BD-NPs) coated with chitosan (CS) for breast cancer chemotherapy, along with anaerobic Bifidobacterium infantis (B. infantis, Bif) serving as self-propelled motors. Due to Bif's specific anaerobic properties, Bif@BDC-NPs precisely anchor hypoxic regions of tumor tissue and significantly increase drug accumulation at the tumor site, thereby promoting tumor cell death. In an in-situ mouse breast cancer model, Bif@BDC-NPs achieved 94 % tumor inhibition, significantly prolonging the median survival of mice to 62 days, and reducing the toxic side effects of DOX. Therefore, the new bacteria-driven oral drug delivery system, Bif@BDC-NPs, overcomes multiple physiological barriers and holds great potential for the precise treatment of solid tumors.

Preparation of paeoniflorin-glycyrrhizic acid complex transethosome gel and its preventive and therapeutic effects on melasma

Paeoniflorin (PF) and glycyrrhizic acid (GL) have skin beautifying effects of anti-inflammation, anti-oxidation, inhibition of melanin formation, and reduction of skin pigmentation. To improve the transdermal permeability of PF and GL in transdermal drug delivery system (TDDS) and enhance their anti-melasma efficacy, PF-GL transethosome (PF-GL-TE) was prepared by ethanol injection method, and finally gelled with carbomer-940 to form PF-GL-TE gel. Consequently, the obtained PF-GL-TE is small and uniform, with an average particle size and a PDI value of about 167.9 nm and 0.102. PF-GL-TE gel showed sustained release behavior and high transdermal permeability in vitro release and transdermal tests. Meanwhile, PF-GL-TE gel played significant preventive effects on melasma induced by progesterone injection and ultraviolet radiation B (UVB) irradiation. According to the results of H&E staining and Masson staining of rat skin, PF-GL-TE gel can alleviate the skin inflammation of and reduce the loss of collagen fibers of back skin in the melasma model rats. Compared with the PF-GL mixture gel, PF-GL-TE gel significantly attenuated the oxidative damage of liver and skin by increasing the activity of SOD and reducing the content of MDA. The results of Western blot showed that PF-GL-TE gel might down-regulate melanin-related proteins expressions of MITF/TYR/TRP1 and TRP2 to prevent and treat melasma. These findings indicate that PF-GL-TE gel is an effective TDDS for delivering PF and GL into the skin, providing a promising preparation for effective prevention and treatment of melasma.

Caged Polyprenylated Xanthones in Garcinia hanburyi and the Biological Activities of Them

The previous phytochemical analyses of Garcinia hanburyi revealed that the main structural characteristic associated with its biological activity is the caged polyprenylated xanthones with a unique 4-oxatricyclo [4.3.1.03,7] dec-2-one scaffold, which contains a highly substituted tetrahydrofuran ring with three quaternary carbons. Based on the progress in research of the chemical constituents, pharmacological effects and modification methods of the caged polyprenylated xanthones, this paper presents a preliminary predictive analysis of their drug-like properties based on the absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and toxicity (ADME/T) properties. It was found out that these compounds have very similar pharmacokinetic properties because they possess the same caged xanthone structure, the 9,10-double bond in a,b-unsaturated ketones are critical for the antitumor activity. The author believes that there is an urgent need to seek new breakthroughs in the study of these caged polyprenylated xanthones. Thus, the research on the route of administration, therapeutic effect, structural modification and development of such active ingredients is of great interest. It is hoped that this paper will provide ideas for researchers to develop and utilize the active ingredients derived from natural products.

Gambogenic acid induces cell death in human osteosarcoma through altering iron metabolism, disturbing the redox balance, and activating the P53 signaling pathway

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary bone malignancy in children and adolescents with extremely poor prognosis. Gambogenic acid (GNA), one of the major bioactive ingredients isolated from Gamboge, has been shown to possess a multipotent antitumor effect, its activity on OS remains unclear yet. In this study, we found that GNA could trigger multiple cell death modalities, including ferroptosis and apoptosis in human OS cells, reduce the cell viability, inhibit the proliferation and invasiveness. Furthermore, GNA provoked oxidative stress leading to GSH depletion-inducing ROS generation and lipid peroxidation, altered iron metabolism represented by the induction of labile iron, mitochondrial membrane potential decreased, mitochondrial morphological changed, decreased the cell viability. In addition, ferroptosis inhibitors (Fer-1) and apoptosis inhibitors (NAC) can partially reversed GNA' s effects on OS cells. Further investigation showed that GNA augmented the expression of P53, bax, caspase 3 and caspase 9 and decreased the expression of Bcl-2, SLC7A11 and glutathione peroxidase-4 (GPX4). In vivo, GNA was showed to delay tumor growth significantly in axenograft osteosarcoma mouse model. In conclusion, this study reveals that GNA simultaneously triggers ferroptosis and apoptosis in human OS cells by inducing oxidative stress via the P53/SLC7A11/GPX4 axis.

Smart anti-vascular nanoagent induces positive feedback loop for self-augmented tumor accumulation

How to achieve efficient drug accumulation in the tumor with low vascular density is a great challenge but the key to push the limit of anti-vascular therapeutic efficacy. Herein, we report a charge-reversible nanoparticles of gambogenic acid (CRNP-GNA) that would induce the positive feedback loop between increased tumor vascular permeability and improved drug accumulation. This positive feedback loop would remarkably improve tumor vascular permeability for efficient drug accumulation through few residue vessels. As compared to its charge-irreversible analogue in the latter injections, the accumulation in tumor and vascular permeability and retention indexes (VPRI) in CRNP-GNA group respectively boosted from nearly equal to 8.32 and 60 times, while its tumorous microvessel density decreased from nearly equal to only 7%. The self-augmented accumulation consequently amplified the antitumor efficacy via multiple pathways of anti-angiogenesis, vascular disruption and pro-apoptosis, where 5 out of 6 tumors in animal models were completely cured by CRNP-GNA. This work confirms that the underlying positive feedback loop for anti-vascular therapy could be induced by charge-reversible drug delivery nanosystem to achieve efficient and self-augmented drug accumulation even in the tumor with few vessels. It provides a novel strategy to conquer the dilemma between anti-vascular efficacy and drug accumulation.

Ultrasound-guided chemoradiotherapy of breast cancer using smart methotrexate-loaded perfluorohexane nanodroplets

Chemoradiotherapy with controlled-release nanocarriers such as sono-sensitive nanodroplets (NDs) can enhance the anticancer activity of chemotherapy medicines and reduces normal tissue side effects. In this study, folic acid-functionalized methotrexate-loaded perfluorohexane NDs with alginate shell (FA-MTX/PFH@alginate NDs) were synthesized, characterized, and their potential for ultrasound-guided chemoradiotherapy of breast cancer was investigated in vitro and in vivo. The cancer cell (4T1) viabilities and surviving fractions after NDs and ultrasound treatments were significantly decreased. However, this reduction was much more significant for ultrasound in combination with X-ray irradiation. The in vitro and in vivo results confirmed that MTX-loaded NDs are highly biocompatible and they have no significant hemolytic activity and organ toxicity. Furthermore, the in vivo results indicated that the FA-MTX/PFH@alginate NDs were accumulated selectively in the tumor region. In conclusion, FA-functionalized MTX/PFH@alginate NDs have a great theranostic performance for ultrasound-controlled drug delivery in combination with radiotherapy of breast cancer.

Melanin-like nanoparticles: advances in surface modification and tumour photothermal therapy

Currently, tumor treatments are characterized by intelligence, diversity and personalization, but the therapeutic reagents used are often limited in clinical efficacy due to problems with water solubility, targeting, stability and multidrug resistance. To remedy these shortcomings, the application of multifunctional nanotechnology in the biomedical field has been widely studied. Synthetic melanin nanoparticles (MNPs) surfaces which contain highly reactive chemical groups such as carboxyl, hydroxyl and amine groups, can be used as a reaction platform on which to graft different functional components. In addition, MNPs easily adhere to substrate surface, and serve as a secondary reaction platform to modify it. The multifunctionality and intrinsic biocompatibility make melanin-like nanoparticles promising as a multifunctional and powerful nanoplatform for oncological applications. This paper first reviews the preparation methods, polymerization mechanisms and physicochemical properties of melanin including natural melanin and chemically synthesized melanin to guide scholars in MNP-based design. Then, recent advances in MNPs especially synthetic polydopamine (PDA) melanin for various medical oncological applications are systematically and thoroughly described, mainly focusing on bioimaging, photothermal therapy (PTT), and drug delivery for tumor therapy. Finally, based on the investigated literature, the current challenges and future directions for clinical translation are reasonably discussed, focusing on the innovative design of MNPs and further elucidation of pharmacokinetics. This paper is a timely and comprehensive and detailed study of the progress of MNPs in tumor therapy, especially PTT, and provides ideas for the design of personalized and customizable oncology nanomedicines to address the heterogeneity of the tumor microenvironment.

Sodium alginate based drug delivery in management of breast cancer

Among women, breast cancer (B·C.) is a common form of cancer that can strike either developed or developing countries. In addition to pregnancy-related variables, hormone therapy lifestyle factors (e.g., physical inactivity, smoking, and alcohol use) may all influence the progression of B·C. The creation of anti-B·C. medication carriers with better stability, controlled and targeted administration, and the goal of minimizing unwanted effects has taken a lot of time and effort. Naturally generated biopolymers-based pharmaceutical delivery techniques have attracted attention for their potential use in treating B·C. It's been shown that natural polymers can deliver high medication concentrations to the desired place and provide prolonged release of pharmaceuticals useful in treating B.C. Alginate is one of the most commonly used drug carriers for delayed and targeted release. In present review will discuss the utilization of sodium alginate as an carrier of anticancer drug, such as paclitaxel, doxorubicin, tamoxifen, curcumin, and others.

Nano-strategies as Oral Drug Delivery Platforms for Treatment of Cancer: Challenges and Future Perspectives

Oral drug administration is the oldest and widely used method for drug administration. The objectives behind developing an oral drug delivery for the treatment of cancer are to achieve low cost treatment by utilizing novel techniques to target cancer through gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) and to enhance patient comfort and compliance through a hospital-free treatment leading to "Chemotherapy at Home." Unfortunately, due to the physiological environment of the GIT and physicochemical properties of drug candidate, the efficacy of oral drug delivery methods is limited in the treatment of cancer. Due to their low hydrophilicity, high P-gp efflux and restricted intestinal permeability most of the anti-cancer drugs fail to achieve oral bioavailability. The review focuses on the efforts, challenges, opportunities and studies conducted by scientists worldwide on the oral administration of anticancer medications via nanocarriers such as liposomes, SLNs and dendrimers, because of their potential to overcome the epithelial barrier associated with GALT, as well as the applications of different polymers in targeting the cancer. The oral delivery can set newer horizons in cancer therapy to make it more patient friendly.

Melanin and Melanin-Functionalized Nanoparticles as Promising Tools in Cancer Research-A Review

Cancer poses an ongoing global challenge, despite the substantial progress made in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease. The existing therapeutic methods remain limited by undesirable outcomes such as systemic toxicity and lack of specificity or long-term efficacy, although innovative alternatives are being continuously investigated. By offering a means for the targeted delivery of therapeutics, nanotechnology (NT) has emerged as a state-of-the-art solution for augmenting the efficiency of currently available cancer therapies while combating their drawbacks. Melanin, a polymeric pigment of natural origin that is widely spread among many living organisms, became a promising candidate for NT-based cancer treatment owing to its unique physicochemical properties (e.g., high biocompatibility, redox behavior, light absorption, chelating ability) and innate antioxidant, photoprotective, anti-inflammatory, and antitumor effects. The latest research on melanin and melanin-like nanoparticles has extended considerably on many fronts, allowing not only efficient cancer treatments via both traditional and modern methods, but also early disease detection and diagnosis. The current paper provides an updated insight into the applicability of melanin in cancer therapy as antitumor agent, molecular target, and delivery nanoplatform.

Photothermal interference urease-powered polydopamine nanomotor for enhanced propulsion and synergistic therapy

Enzyme-powered nanomotors with active motion have opened a new door in design of biocompatible drug delivery systems for cancer treatment. However, the movement of them still faces huge challenges due to the viscous physiological environment. To address this issue, we developed a photothermal interference (PTI) urease-modified polydopamine (PDA) nanomotor (PDA@HSA@Ur) for deeper-penetration of doxorubicin (DOX) through improved motion. The urease-powered nanomotors can generate self-propulsion via catalyzing decomposition of biocompatible urea into carbon dioxide and ammonia through a self-diffusiophoretic. Meanwhile, when exposed to near-infrared (NIR) laser, the increased temperature of tumors microenvironment from nanomotors can not only induce tumor cell apoptosis but also enhance the biocatalytic activity of urease to improve the motion of nanomotors. Compared to the nanomotors propelled only by urea, PTI nanomotors realize highly effective self-propulsion with improved cellular uptake in vitro. Furthermore, PTI nanomotors display an enhanced anticancer efficiency owing to synergistic photothermal and chemotherapy effect. The PTI reported in this manuscript is the first to provide a thermally assisted method for highly efficient cancer treatment with urease-powered nanomotors in a complex physiological environment through enhanced motion and synergistic therapy.

Mucus Penetrating and Cell-Binding Polyzwitterionic Micelles as Potent Oral Nanomedicine for Cancer Drug Delivery

Orally administrable anticancer nanomedicines are highly desirable due to their easy and repeatable administration, but are not yet feasible because the current nanomedicine cannot simultaneously overcome the strong mucus and villi barriers and thus have very low bioavailability (BA). Herein, this work presents the first polymeric micelle capable of fast mucus permeation and villi absorption and delivering paclitaxel (PTX) efficiently to tumors with therapeutic efficacy even better than intravenously administered polyethylene glycol based counterpart or free PTX. Poly[2-(N-oxide-N,N-diethylamino)ethyl methacrylate] (OPDEA), a water-soluble polyzwitterion, is highly nonfouling to proteins and other biomacromolecules such as mucin but can weakly bind to phospholipids. Therefore, the micelle of its block copolymer with poly(ε-caprolactone) (OPDEA-PCL) can efficiently permeate through the viscous mucus and bind to villi, which triggers transcytosis-mediated transepithelial transport into blood circulation for tumor accumulation. The orally administered micelles deliver PTX to tumors, efficiently inhibiting the growth of HepG2 and patient-derived hepatocellular carcinoma xenografts and triple-negative breast tumors. These results demonstrate that OPDEA-based micelles may serve as an efficient oral nanomedicine for delivering other small molecules or even large molecules.

Polymer nano-systems for the encapsulation and delivery of active biomacromolecular therapeutic agents

Biomacromolecular therapeutic agents, particularly proteins, antigens, enzymes, and nucleic acids are emerging as powerful candidates for the treatment of various diseases and the development of the recent vaccine based on mRNA highlights the enormous potential of this class of drugs for future medical applications. However, biomacromolecular therapeutic agents present an enormous delivery challenge compared to traditional small molecules due to both a high molecular weight and a sensitive structure. Hence, the translation of their inherent pharmaceutical capacity into functional therapies is often hindered by the limited performance of conventional delivery vehicles. Polymer drug delivery systems are a modular solution able to address those issues. In this review, we discuss recent developments in the design of polymer delivery systems specifically tailored to the delivery challenges of biomacromolecular therapeutic agents. In the future, only in combination with a multifaceted and highly tunable delivery system, biomacromolecular therapeutic agents will realize their promising potential for the treatment of diseases and for the future of human health.