No abstract

It is essential for nanoparticles to delivery drugs accurately and penetrate deeply to tumor. However, complicated tumor microenvironment such as elevated tumor interstitial fluid pressure (IFP) and solid stress reduces the transport efficiency of nanomedicines in tumor.Methods: We herein report a drug delivery system of phenylboronic acid-decorated soy protein nanoparticles with the size of 30 nm, 50 nm and 150 nm. In vitro examinations including cytotoxicity, cellular uptake and penetration in multicellular tumor spheroids and in vivo observations including IFP and tumor solid stress measurements and antitumor activity were performed.Results: It was found that phenylboronic acid moiety could endow the nanoparticles actively targeting affinity to sialic acid (SA) which overexpressed in tumor cells. Simultaneously soy protein could improve tumor microenvironment such as reduction of IFP and tumor stress. Among the soy protein nanoparticles with different sizes, 30 nm-sized nanoparticles showed the best cellular uptake and highest cytotoxicity in vitro after loading doxorubicin (DOX). In vivo, 30 nm-sized nanoparticles showed the best tumor microenvironment improvement efficiency, leading to the enhanced drug accumulation and antitumor efficiency when combination with DOX.Conclusion: Our study introduces a bioactive nanoparticulate design strategy to actively target and significantly improve tumor microenvironment for enhanced cancer therapy.

Bleomycin monosaccharide-decorated platinum-incorporating supramolecular nanoparticles showed excellent tumor targeting and antitumor efficacy.

Cisplatin-rich supramolecular nanoparticles are constructed through the supramolecular inclusion interaction between the admantyl (Ad)-terminated poly(aspartic acid) (Ad-P(Asp)) and the β-cyclodextrin (β-CD)-terminated poly(2-methyl-2-oxazoline). In the formation of the nanoparticles, the β-CD/admantane inclusion complex integrates poly(2-methyl-2-oxazoline) and poly(aspartic acid) chains to form pseudoblock copolymers, followed by the coordination between carboxyl groups in P(Asp) block and cisplatin. This coordination interaction drives the formation of nanoparticle and enables cisplatin incorporated into the nanoparticles. The spherical cisplatin-rich supramolecular nanoparticles have 53% cisplatin-loading content, good stability, and effective inhibition of the cell proliferation when it is tested in H22 cancer cells. Near-infrared fluorescence imaging of tumor bearing mice reveals that the cisplatin-rich nanoparticles can target the tumor in vivo effectively.

Size is one of the crucial factors influencing the biological properties of nanomedicines. However, the size control of nanomaterials is still very challenging, and the size effect on their biological properties is worth studying. Herein, we present the synthesis and size control of a series of multiarm block copolymers with the third-generation PAMAM (G3 PAMAM) as the core. The multiarm copolymers were synthesized by the ring-opening polymerization of N-carboxyanhydride of the L-glutamic acid-5tert-butylester [Glu(OtBu)-NCA] monomer with the amineterminated PAMAM as the initiator, followed by the synthesis of the poly(carboxybetaine) (PCB) block via the atom transfer radical polymerization of the 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate monomer, the reaction with tert-butyl bromoacetate, and the deprotection of the tert-butyl ester groups. The polyglutamic acid (PGA) block provided abundant reactive groups for the functionalization of the multiarm block copolymers, and the PCB block imparted excellent water solubility and anti-protein adsorption capability. We synthesized three multiarm copolymers with diameters of 15, 24, and 41 nm, respectively, by tuning the polymerization degrees of the arms. Doxorubicin was coupled to the PGA block through the acylhydrazone linkage, which resulted in a pH-sensitive drug release and a drug loading of over 20%. We systematically investigated the size effects on their cellular uptake, cytotoxicity, endocytic pathway, biodistribution, tumor penetration, and antitumor activity. This work is helpful for the design of polymeric nano-drug carriers for tumor therapy.