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  • Enhanced transcellular penetration and drug delivery by crosslinked polymeric micelles into pancreatic multicellular tumor spheroids.

Enhanced transcellular penetration and drug delivery by crosslinked polymeric micelles into pancreatic multicellular tumor spheroids.

Biomaterials science (2015-07-30)
Hongxu Lu, Robert H Utama, Uraiphan Kitiyotsawat, Krzysztof Babiuch, Yanyan Jiang, Martina H Stenzel
ABSTRACT

Many attempts have been made in the application of multicellular tumor spheroids (MCTS) as a 3D tumor model to investigate their biological responses upon introduction of polymeric micelles as nanocarriers for therapeutic applications. However, the micelle penetration pathways in MCTS are not yet known. In this study, micelles (uncrosslinked, UCM) were prepared by self-assembly of block copolymer poly(N-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide-co-methacrylic acid)-block-poly(methyl methacrylate) (P(HPMA-co-MAA)-b-PMMA). Subsequently, the shells were crosslinked to form relatively stable micelles (CKM). Both UCM and CKM penetrated deeper and delivered more doxorubicin (DOX) into MCTS than the diffusion of the free DOX. Additionally, CKM revealed higher delivery efficiency than UCM. The inhibition of caveolae-mediated endocytosis, by Filipin treatment, decreased the uptake and penetration of the micelles into MCTS. Treatment with Exo1, an exocytosis inhibitor, produced the same effect. Furthermore, movement of the micelles through the extracellular matrices (ECM), as modelled using collagen micro-spheroids, appeared to be limited to the peripheral layer of the collagen spheroids. Those results indicate that penetration of P(HPMA-co-MAA)-b-PMMA micelles depended more on transcellular transport than on diffusion through ECM between the cells. DOX-loaded CKM inhibited MCTS growth more than their UCM counterpart, due to possible cessation of endocytosis and exocytosis in the apoptotic peripheral cells, caused by faster release of DOX from UCM.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

Sigma-Aldrich
Methanol, NMR reference standard
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Methyl methacrylate, 99%, stabilized
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Sodium azide, purum p.a., ≥99.0% (T)
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Sodium azide, BioUltra, ≥99.5% (T)
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Diethyl ether, contains 1 ppm BHT as inhibitor, anhydrous, ≥99.7%
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N,N-Dimethylformamide, anhydrous, 99.8%
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1,8-Diaminooctane, 98%
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Doxorubicin hydrochloride, suitable for fluorescence, 98.0-102.0% (HPLC)
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Methyl methacrylate, contains ≤30 ppm MEHQ as inhibitor, 99%
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Diethyl ether
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Methanol, anhydrous, 99.8%
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N,N-Dimethylformamide, for molecular biology, ≥99%
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Sodium azide, BioXtra
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2-Deoxy-D-glucose, ≥98% (GC), BioXtra
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2-Deoxy-D-glucose, ≥99% (GC), crystalline
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2-Deoxy-D-glucose, ≥98% (GC), crystalline
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Doxorubicin hydrochloride, 98.0-102.0% (HPLC)
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Sodium azide, ReagentPlus®, ≥99.5%
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N-(2-Hydroxypropyl)-2-methyl-prop-2-enamide, AldrichCPR
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N,N-Dimethylacetamide, suitable for peptide synthesis, ≥99.8% (GC)
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