A polymer-based nanocarrier was developed for the co-delivery of epigenetic and chemotherapeutic drugs. The sterically stabilized hybrid micelle system uses micelles composed of D-α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate (vitamin E TPGS or TPGS) and 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-N-[methoxy(polyethylene glycol)-2000] (DSPE-PEG2000). In this study, suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (SAHA) and paclitaxel were used as model drugs for combination chemotherapy to enhance therapeutic efficiency in targeting mesenchyme-like triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells. Combination therapy of paclitaxel and SAHA in a dual drug micelle system, (P + S) mic , exhibited an IC50 value of 0.52 μg/mL, which is about 5.91-fold more cytotoxic than the mere combination of free drugs (P + S). Furthermore, the (P + S) mic formulation was far more effective at inhibiting cell migration by more than 3.4-fold than the control. Thus, our findings show that the co-delivery of these drugs using the micelle system greatly enhances their therapeutic effect at a lower dosage, thereby minimizing toxicity. In addition, this formulation is proved to be remarkably effective in preventing cell migration at low dosage.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.