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Published on: June 13, 2014
pH-Responsive Hyaluronic Acid Nanoparticles for Enhanced Triple Negative Breast Cancer Therapy
Xiangle Zeng1, Hairong Wang1, Yawen Zhang1
1School of Pharmacy, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, 233030, People's Republic of China.
Purpose:
This study emphasized that dasatinib (DAS) and olaparib (OLA) have synergistic effects on triple negative breast cancer, by inducing DNA damage and inhibiting DNA damage repair. However, poor water solubility, short half-life of drugs, and low drug concentration in tumor tissue limit the clinical application.
Methods:
In this research, acid-sensitive ester bonds were used to connect hydrophobic DAS and hydrophilic hyaluronic acid (HA) to form the amphiphilic polymer prodrug HA-DAS, and then OLA was added as the core, the HA-DAS was used as the carrier to form nanomicelles (HDO-NPs) in aqueous. The characterization and drug release of HDO-NPs were studied, and the cytotoxicity, targeting effect, and intracellular transport behavior of HDO-NPs were evaluated in MDA-MB-231. In addition, the pharmacokinetic and therapeutic effect of HDO-NPs were further verified in vivo.
Results:
In vitro characterizations showed that HDO-NPs were spherical with uniform particle size, good stability and anti-dilution ability, and displayed favorable pH-responsive drug release behavior. In addition, the cell experiments showed that HDO-NPs could be effectively taken up by binding to the overexpressed CD44 proteins of MDA-MB-231 cells, resulting in increased intracellular drug concentration. In vivo experiments showed that HDO-NPs can effectively target tumor tissues, have excellent therapeutic effects on tumor, significantly prolong the circulation time of drugs in vivo, and effectively improved the bioavailability of drugs.
Conclusion:
DAS and OLA were designed into micelles, the efficacy of HDO-NPs was higher than that of free drugs. Therefore, HDO-NPs have good application prospects in the treatment of triple negative breast cancer.
Insights
New nanomicelles (HDO-NPs) combine dasatinib (DAS) and olaparib (OLA) for triple-negative breast cancer. These drug-loaded nanoparticles improve drug delivery, enhance efficacy, and show promising therapeutic potential in preclinical studies.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Nanotechnology
- Oncology
Background:
- Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) poses a significant therapeutic challenge.
- Dasatinib (DAS) and olaparib (OLA) exhibit synergistic effects against TNBC by inducing DNA damage and inhibiting repair.
- Limitations in drug solubility, half-life, and tumor concentration hinder the clinical application of DAS and OLA.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel nanomicelle formulation (HDO-NPs) for co-delivering dasatinib (DAS) and olaparib (OLA) to enhance TNBC treatment.
- To overcome the limitations of free DAS and OLA, including poor solubility and suboptimal tumor targeting.
Main Methods:
- Amphiphilic polymer prodrugs (HA-DAS) were synthesized using acid-sensitive ester bonds to link DAS and hyaluronic acid (HA).
- Nanomicelles (HDO-NPs) were formed by encapsulating OLA within HA-DAS carriers.
- Characterization of HDO-NPs included particle size, stability, drug release, cytotoxicity, cellular uptake, pharmacokinetics, and in vivo therapeutic efficacy in TNBC models.
Main Results:
- HDO-NPs exhibited spherical morphology, uniform particle size, good stability, and pH-responsive drug release.
- Effective uptake by MDA-MB-231 cells via CD44 receptor binding, leading to increased intracellular drug concentration.
- In vivo studies demonstrated enhanced tumor targeting, improved therapeutic efficacy, prolonged drug circulation time, and increased bioavailability compared to free drugs.
Conclusions:
- HDO-NPs represent a promising drug delivery system for co-delivering DAS and OLA.
- The developed nanomicelles significantly enhance the therapeutic efficacy against triple-negative breast cancer.
- HDO-NPs show strong potential for clinical application in TNBC treatment.

