Electromotive versus passive diffusion of mitomycin C into human bladder wall: concentration-depth profiles studies

Area of Science:

• Pharmacology and Drug Delivery
• Urology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Bladder cancer treatment often involves intravesical chemotherapy.
• Optimizing drug penetration into the bladder wall is crucial for efficacy.
• Mitomycin C (MMC) is a commonly used chemotherapeutic agent.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess mitomycin C (MMC) concentration-depth profiles in human bladder wall following passive diffusion (PD).
• To compare MMC concentration-depth profiles after PD versus electromotive drug administration (EMDA).
• To evaluate the viability of human bladder tissue as a model for drug delivery assessment.

Main Methods:

• Human bladder wall sections were used in a two-compartment cell system.
• MMC concentrations were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography after PD and EMDA.
• Tissue viability, morphology, and MMC stability were assessed.

Main Results:

• EMDA resulted in significantly higher MMC concentrations in the urothelium, lamina propria, and muscularis layers compared to PD (P < 0.0001).
• MMC concentrations in the urothelium were 170.0 µg/g with EMDA versus 46.6 µg/g with PD.
• All bladder sections remained viable, and MMC structure was unchanged throughout the experiments.

Conclusions:

• EMDA significantly enhances the transport of MMC into all layers of the bladder wall.
• Viable human bladder wall sections serve as a reliable model for evaluating drug delivery methods.
• EMDA represents a promising approach for improving intravesical MMC delivery in bladder cancer treatment.