Uniform block copolymer nanofibers for the delivery of paclitaxel in 2D and 3D glioblastoma tumor models

Cancer treatment has transformed in recent years, with the introduction of immunotherapy providing substantial improvements in prognoses for certain cancers. However, traditional small molecule chemotherapeutics remain the major frontline of defence, and improving their delivery to solid tumors is of utmost importance for improving potency and reducing side effects. Here, length-controlled one-dimensional seed nanofibers (ca. 25 nm, ĐL = 1.05) were generated from poly(fluorenetrimethylenecarbonate)-block-poly(dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate) via living crystallization-driven self-assembly. Paclitaxel, with an encapsulation content ranging from 1 to 100 wt%, was loaded onto the preformed nanoparticles by solvent addition and evaporation. Drug loading was quantified by dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy. Drug-loaded vectors were then incubated with U87 MG glioblastoma cells in a 2D cell assay for up to 72 h, and their anticancer properties were determined. It was observed that seed nanofibers loaded with 20 wt% paclitaxel were the most advantageous combination (IC50 = 0.48 μg mL-1), while pure seed nanofibers with no loaded drug displayed much lower cytotoxicity (IC50 = 11.52 μg mL-1). The IC50 of the loaded seed nanofibers rivaled that of the commercially approved Abraxane® (IC50 = 0.46 μg mL-1). 3D tumor spheroids were then cultured and subjected to the same stresses. Live/dead cell staining revealed that once more, seed nanofibers with 20 wt% paclitaxel, Abraxane®, and paclitaxel all exhibited similar levels of potency (55% viability), whereas control samples exhibited much higher cell viability (70%) after 3 days. These results demonstrate that nanofibers contain great potential as biocompatible drug delivery vehicles for cancer treatment as they exert a similar anticancer effect to the commercially available Abraxane®.

Mechanism of Action and Design of Potent Antibacterial Block Copolymer Nanoparticles

Self-assembled polymer nanoparticles are promising antibacterials, with nonspherical morphologies of particular interest as recent work has demonstrated enhanced antibacterial activity relative to their spherical counterparts. However, the reasons for this enhancement are currently unclear. We have performed a multifaceted analysis of the antibacterial mechanism of action of 1D nanofibers relative to nanospheres by the use of flow cytometry, high-resolution microscopy, and evaluations of the antibacterial activity of pristine and tetracycline-loaded nanoparticles. Low-length dispersity, fluorescent diblock copolymer nanofibers with a crystalline poly(fluorenetrimethylenecarbonate) (PFTMC) core (length = 104 and 472 nm, height = 7 nm, width = 10-13 nm) and a partially protonated poly(dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA) corona (length = 12 nm) were prepared via seeded growth living crystallization-driven self-assembly. Their behavior was compared to that of analogous nanospheres containing an amorphous PFTMC core (diameter of 12 nm). While all nanoparticles were uptaken into Escherichia coli W3110, crystalline-core nanofibers were observed to cause significant bacterial damage. Drug loading studies indicated that while all nanoparticle antibacterial activity was enhanced in combination with tetracycline, the enhancement was especially prominent when small nanoparticles (ca. 15-25 nm) were employed. Therefore, the identified differences in the mechanism of action and the demonstrated consequences for nanoparticle size and morphology control may be exploited for the future design of potent antibacterial agents for overcoming antibacterial resistance. This study also reinforces the requirement of morphological control over polymer nanoparticles for biomedical applications, as differences in activity are observed depending on their size, shape, and core-crystallinity.

Folate modified dual pH/reduction-responsive mixed micelles assembled using FA-PEG-PDEAEMA and PEG-SS-PCL for doxorubicin delivery

Aiming at achieving the concurrent performances of high loading, well controlled release and active targeted delivery, folate (FA) modified dual pH/reduction-responsive mixed polymeric micelles were rationally assembled using FA-PEG-PDEAEMA and PEG-SS-PCL by dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulations. The optimized polymers PEG₁₁₂-PDEAEMA₄₀, FA-PEG₁₁₂-PDEAEMA₄₀, and PEG₁₁₂-SS-PCL₇₀ were synthesized and characterized using ¹H NMR, FT-IR and GPC, and their mixed micelles were applied for doxorubicin (DOX) delivery. The drug loading capacity (LC) and encapsulation efficiency (EE) values of the MIX1 (FA-PEG₁₁₂-PDEAEMA₄₀/PEG₁₁₂-SS-PCL₇₀) at a DOX/polymer feeding ratio of 15 mg/30 mg were 20.22% and 50.69%, which were higher than those of single polymer micelles and MIX2 (PEG₁₁₂-PDEAEMA₄₀/PEG₁₁₂-SS-PCL₇₀). Particle size distributions, mesoscopic morphologies, DPD simulations and in vitro drug release profiles all confirmed the well-controlled release performance of the DOX-loaded micelles formed by MIX1: slow DOX release with a cumulative release of 20.46% in the neutral environment and accelerated release with a cumulative release of 74.20% at pH 5.0 + 10 mM DTT within 120 h, which were similar to those of MIX2. Cytotoxicity assay found that both MIX1 and MIX2 blank micelles were biocompatible, and a superior inhibitory effect of the FA-modified DOX-loaded micelles MIX1 on HepG2 cells was found compared to that of free DOX and non-FA-modified DOX-loaded micelles MIX2. All of these confirmed the superiority of MIX1 micelles with high loading capacity, well controlled release, and enhanced inhibitory effects on HepG2 cells, which might be a prospective candidate for anticancer drug delivery.

Length-Controlled Nanofiber Micelleplexes as Efficient Nucleic Acid Delivery Vehicles

Micelleplexes show great promise as effective polymeric delivery systems for nucleic acids. Although studies have shown that spherical micelleplexes can exhibit superior cellular transfection to polyplexes, to date there has been no report on the effects of micelleplex morphology on cellular transfection. In this work, we prepared precision, length-tunable poly(fluorenetrimethylenecarbonate)-b-poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) (PFTMC₁₆-b-PDMAEMA₁₃₁) nanofiber micelleplexes and compared their properties and transfection activity to those of the equivalent nanosphere micelleplexes and polyplexes. We studied the DNA complexation process in detail via a range of techniques including cryo-transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and ζ-potential measurements, thereby examining how nanofiber micelleplexes form, as well the key differences that exist compared to nanosphere micelleplexes and polyplexes in terms of DNA loading and colloidal stability. The effects of particle morphology and nanofiber length on the transfection and cell viability of U-87 MG glioblastoma cells with a luciferase plasmid were explored, revealing that short nanofiber micelleplexes (length < ca. 100 nm) were the most effective delivery vehicle examined, outperforming nanosphere micelleplexes, polyplexes, and longer nanofiber micelleplexes as well as the Lipofectamine 2000 control. This study highlights the potential importance of 1D micelleplex morphologies for achieving optimal transfection activity and provides a fundamental platform for the future development of more effective polymeric nucleic acid delivery vehicles.

Uniform, Length-Tunable Antibacterial 1D Diblock Copolymer Nanofibers

The rapid increase in antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria has led to an urgent need to develop new methods of treating bacterial infections. Antibacterial polymeric nanoparticles are of interest for...