Targeted drug delivery to C6 glioma by transferrin-coupled liposomes

Recent advances in liposome technology have shown promise relative to the introduction of chemotherapeutic agents with reduced toxicity, extended longevity, and potential for cell-specific targeting. In this study we report the engineering of a liposomal delivery system for the chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin. The system was targeted specifically to C6 glioma in vitro by coupling transferrin to the distal ends of liposomal polyethylene glycol (PEG) chains. The transferrin receptor is overexpressed on glioma, with the extent of overexpression correlated to the severity of the tumor. Significantly increased gliomal doxorubicin uptake was achieved by drug encapsulation within transferrin-coupled liposomes compared to other liposome populations. Doxorubicin encapsulated within transferrin-coupled liposomes exhibited 70% of free doxorubicin uptake as compared to 54, 14, and 34% for non-PEG, PEG, and albumin-coupled PEG liposomes, respectively. Competitive binding assays support the receptor-mediated mechanism of targeting. The addition of one microM free transferrin reduced the uptake of doxorubicin encapsulated within transferrin-coupled liposomes by 30%.