Magnetic field activated drug release system based on magnetic PLGA microspheres for chemo-thermal therapy

Controlled drug delivery systems have been extensively investigated for cancer therapy in order to obtain better specific targeting and therapeutic efficiency. Herein, we developed doxorubicin-loaded magnetic PLGA microspheres (DOX-MMS), in which DOX was encapsulated in the core and high contents (28.3 wt%) of γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles (IOs) were electrostatically assembled on the surface of microsphere to ensure the high sensitivity to response of an external alternating current magnetic field (ACMF). The IOs in PLGA shell can both induce the heat effect and trigger shell permeability enhancement to release drugs when DOX-MMs was activated by ACMF. Results show that the cumulative drug release from DOX-MMs exposed to ACMF for 30 min (21.6%) was significantly higher (approximately 7 times higher) than that not exposed to ACMF (2.8%). The combination of hyperthermia and enhanced DOX release from DOX-MMS is beneficial for in vitro 4T1 breast cancer cell apoptosis as well as effective inhibition of tumor growth in 4T1 tumor xenografts. Therefore, the DOX-MMS can be optimized as powerful delivery system for efficient magnetic responsive drug release and chemo-thermal therapy.