Issue 43, 2017

Development of a dual drug-loaded hydrogel delivery system for enhanced cancer therapy: in situ formation, degradation and synergistic antitumor efficiency

Abstract

Herein, a dual drug-loaded hydrogel delivery system was constructed using aldehyded pullulan (A-Pul), ε-poly-L-lysine (ε-PL), and branched polyethylenimine (BPEI) in an aqueous solution via a Schiff base reaction. CDDP and DOX were loaded into the network of hydrogels for combination drug therapy. Gelation time changed from 40 s to 240 s when reaction solutions were stored at different temperatures. Scanning electron microscopy images and swelling dynamics demonstrated that the hydrogels had a homogeneous porous structure and good swelling behavior. The in vitro degradation rate and drug release rate at pH 7.0 were faster than those at pH 7.4; this indicated that the hydrogels displayed controlled drug release and pH-dependent behavior. The hydrogels could be injected and formed in situ and degraded in vivo, and the dual-drug-loaded hydrogel displayed the most efficient tumor inhibition; this indicated the synergistic anticancer effect of the CDDP + DOX combination therapy in H22 liver tumor-bearing mice. Furthermore, the hydrogels displayed no cytotoxicity against Huh-7 cells and exhibited excellent security and biocompatibility in vivo. Therefore, the hydrogels have potential applications as multidrug carriers for enhanced synergistic therapy.

Graphical abstract: Development of a dual drug-loaded hydrogel delivery system for enhanced cancer therapy: in situ formation, degradation and synergistic antitumor efficiency

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
14 Aug. 2017
Accepted
06 Okt. 2017
First published
08 Okt. 2017

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2017,5, 8487-8497

Development of a dual drug-loaded hydrogel delivery system for enhanced cancer therapy: in situ formation, degradation and synergistic antitumor efficiency

C. Cheng, X. Zhang, Y. Meng, L. Chen and Q. Zhang, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2017, 5, 8487 DOI: 10.1039/C7TB02173A

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