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Sustained retina drug delivery and rational drug combination are considered essential for enhancing the efficacy of therapy for wet age-related macular degeneration (wAMD) due to the conservative structure of the posterior ocular segment and the multi-factorial pathological mechanism. Designing a drug co-delivery system that can simultaneously achieve deep penetration and long-lasting retention in the vitreous is highly desired, yet remains a huge challenge. In this study, we fabricated Bor/RB-M@TRG as an intravitreal-injectable hydrogel depot for deep penetration into the posterior ocular segment and long-lasting distribution in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) layer. The Bor/RB-M@TRG consisted of borneol-decorated rhein and baicalein-coloaded microemulsions (Bor/RB-M, the therapy entity) and a temperature-responsive hydrogel matrix (the intravitreal depot). Bor/RB-M exhibited the strongest in vitro anti-angiogenic effects among all the groups studied, which is potentially associated with improved cellular uptake, as well as the synergism of rhein and baicalein, acting via anti-angiogenic and anti-oxidative stress pathways, respectively. Importantly, a single intravitreal (IVT) injection with Bor/RB-M@TRG displayed significant inhibition against the CNV of wAMD model mice, compared to all other groups. Particularly, coumarin-6-labeled Bor/RB-M@TRG (Bor/C6-M@TRG) could not only deeply penetrate into the retina but also stably accumulate in the RPE layer for at least 14 days. Our design integrates the advantages of borneol-decorated microemulsions and hydrogel depots, offering a promising new approach for clinically-translatable retinal drug delivery and synergistic anti-wAMD treatment.

Lung metastasis is a fatal and late-stage event for many solid tumors. Multiple lines of evidence have demonstrated that diallyl trisulfide (DATS), an active ingredient of garlic, possesses striking antimetastatic effects. However, the lack of highly efficient organ-compatible carriers restricts its application. In the present study, we showed that extracellular microparticles encapsulated with DATS (DATS-MPs) were capable of interfering with the prometastatic inflammatory microenvironment in local tissues. DATS-MPs were successfully prepared and exhibited typical characteristics of B16BL6-derived extracellular vesicles. The DATS-MPs preferentially fused with cancer cells and endogenous cells (mouse lung epithelial MLE-12 cells) from the metastatic organs in vitro. More interestingly, the systemically administered MPs predominantly accumulated in the lung tissue that serves as their main metastatic organ. The drug-loaded MPs exerted higher antimetastatic effects than DATS alone in both the spontaneous and the experimental metastasis models in mice (*p < 0.05). Additionally, we found that DATS-MPs inhibited tumor cell migration and interfered with the prometastatic inflammatory microenvironment via decreasing the release of S100A8/A9, serum amyloid A (SAA), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) and inhibiting the expression of fibronectin, MRP8, myeloperoxidase (MPO), and the toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-Myd88 in the lung tissues. Collectively, DATS-MPs appeared to enhance the antimetastatic efficiency of DATS in animal models under study.

Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) deteriorate tumor microenvironment (TME) and hinder intra-tumoral drug delivery. Direct depleting CAFs exists unpredictable risks of tumor metastasis. Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a critical process of CAFs converted from hepatic stellate cells during hepatocellular tumorigenesis; however, until now the feasibility of reversing EMT to battle hepatocellular carcinoma has not been comprehensively explored. In this study, we report a CFH peptide (CFHKHKSPALSPVGGG)-decorated liposomal oxymatrine (CFH/OM-L) with a high affinity to Tenascin-C for targeted inactivating CAFs through reversing EMT, which is verified by the upregulation of E-cadherin and downregulation of vimentin, N-cadherin, and snail protein in vivo and in vitro. After the combination with icaritin-loaded lipid complex, CFH/OM-L obviously boosts the comprehensive anticancer efficacy in both 3D tumor spheroids and stromal-rich tumor xenograft nude mouse models. The combinational therapy not only effectively reversed the in vivo EMT process but also significantly lowered the collagen, creating favorable conditions for deep penetration of nanoparticles. More importantly, CFH/OM-L does not kill but inactivates CAFs, resulting in not only a low risk of tumor metastasis but also a reprogramming TME, such as M1 tumor-associated macrophages polarization and natural killer cells activation. Such strategy paves a moderate way to remold TME without depleting CAFs and provides a powerful tool to design strategies of combinational hepatocellular carcinoma therapy. Graphical Abstract

Myocardial ischaemia-reperfusion injury (MI/RI) induces injury against cardiomyocytes and triggers myocardial infarction. Previously, we demonstrated that tetramethylprazine (TMP) was a promising therapeutic agent for attenuating MI/RI. However, poor absorption and low homing efficiency are two main obstacles to the further application of TMP. In this study, a platelet membrane-cloaking TMP-loaded microemulsion (P/TMP-MEs) capable of promoting in vivo absorption and decreasing non-targeted accumulation was fabricated for the improved MI/RI therapy. The average particle size and zeta potential of P/TMP-MEs were 35.9 ± 2.5 nm and −29.4 ± 3.1 mV, respectively. 35.4 ± 2.4 wt% TMP was released from P/TMP-MEs after 48 h of incubation with rat plasma. The coating of the platelet membrane significantly decreased the internalisation of P/TMP-MEs by THP-1 macrophage-like cells compared with the non-platelet modified TMP-loaded microemulsion (TMP-MEs). Besides, P/TMP-MEs did not activate the complement system. After treatment with P/TMP-MEs, the dehydrogenase (LDH) level of the cardiomyocytes was significantly lower than other controls. Rats single-administrated with P/TMP-MEs exhibited the area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC) at 463796.7 ± 53614.3 ng/mL/h, and ∼400 ng/mL TMP could still be detected from the plasma after 24 h of administration, exhibiting a prolonged blood circulation time as the platelet membrane coating. More importantly, in the MI/RI therapy in vivo, the creatine kinase (CK) and LDH of the rats treated with P/TMP-MEs were remarkably decreased compared with the free TMP and TMP-MEs groups. The combinational strategy of platelet membrane coating and microemulsion assembly endows TMP with a better prospect for MI/RI therapy.

Tumor-targeted ligand modification and nanosized coloaded drug delivery systems are promising for cancer therapy. In this study, we showed that coix seed oil and tripterine coloaded microemulsions with a transferrin modification (Tf-CT-MEs) could improve the treatment of cervical cancer. Tf-CT-MEs exhibited good stability in serum and a notably synergistic antiproliferation effect. In the HeLa xenograft tumor-bearing mouse model, Tf-CT-MEs accumulated at tumor sites and penetrated deeply in tumor tissues. Tf-CT-MEs had superior anticancer efficacy in vivo, which greatly slowed the growth of tumors (***p < 0.001 vs saline). We also found that Tf-CT-MEs inhibited tumor cell proliferation, enhanced antiangiogenesis, and induced apoptosis by regulating bax/bcl-2 and the activating caspase-3 pathway. Tf-CT-MEs decreased by 27.7, 26.9, 61.2, and 42.5% of concentrations of TGF-β1, CCL2, TNF-α, and IL-6 in serum, respectively. In addition, Tf-CT-MEs showed little toxicity in vital organs. These results were due to the improved drug delivery efficiency. Collectively, Tf-CT-MEs enhance tumor-targeting, facilitate deep penetration of drugs, and have promising potential as an efficient treatment for cervical cancer.

Amphiphilic chitosan derivatives have attracted wide attention as drug carriers due to their physicochemical properties. However, obtaining a desired amphiphilic chitosan derivative by tuning the various functional groups was complex and time-consuming. Therefore, a facile and common synthesis strategy would be promising. In this study, a modular strategy based on strain-promoted azide-alkyne cycloaddition (SPAAC) click reaction was designed and applied in synthesizing deoxycholic acid- or octanoic acid-modified N-azido propionyl-N,O-sulfate chitosan through tuning the hydrophobic groups. Additionally, chitosan derivatives with the same substitute groups were prepared via amide coupling as controls. We demonstrated that these derivates via the two strategies showed no obvious difference in physicochemical properties, drug loading ability and biosafety, indicating the feasibility of modular strategy. Notably, the modular strategy exhibited advantages including high reactivity, flexibility and reproducibility. We believe that this modular strategy could provide varied chitosan derivatives in an easy and high-efficiency way for improving multifunctional drug carriers.

Yunyan Chen,1–3 Ding Qu,1,2 Rongping Fu,1,2 Mengfei Guo,1,2 Yue Qin,1,2 Jian Guo,1,2 Yan Chen1,2 1Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210028, China; 2Research Center for Multicomponent of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Microecology, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210028, China; 3Wannan Medical College, Wuhu 241002, China Purpose: A transferrin-modified microemulsion carrying coix seed oil and tripterine (Tf-CT-MEs) was developed for improved tumor-specific accumulation and penetration to enhance cervical cancer treatment. Materials and methods: Tripterine-loaded coix seed oil microemulsion (CT-MEs) was prepared through one-step emulsion method. The morphology, size, and zeta potential of CT-MEs and Tf-CT-MEs were examined by transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. The cellular uptake and mechanisms of HeLa cells were investigated by flow cytometry. Intratumor penetration was investigated using a HeLa three-dimensional (3D) tumor spheroid as the model. The cytotoxicity of the CT-MEs and Tf-CT-MEs against HeLa cells were evaluated by the MTT assay. Additionally, the apoptotic rate of CT-MEs and Tf-CT-MEs inducing apoptosis in HeLa cells was evaluated. Results: In the physicochemical characterization, coix seed oil and CT-MEs exhibited a small size (32.47±0.15 nm) and nearly neutral surface charge (-0.36±0.11 mV). After modification with transferrin, the particle size of Tf-CT-MEs slightly increased to 40.02±0.21 nm, but the zeta potential decreased remarkably to -13.63±1.31 mV. The IC50 of Tf-CT-MEs against HeLa cells was 0.7260 µM, which was 2.58-fold lower than that of CT-MEs. In cellular studies, the intracellular fluorescence intensity of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled Tf-CT-MEs (FITC/Tf-CT-MEs) was 2.28-fold higher than that of FITC-labeled CT-MEs (FITC/CT-MEs). The fluorescence signal of Tf-CT-MEs was observed at 350 µm below the surface of the 3D tumor spheroid. The apoptotic rate of cells treated with Tf-CT-MEs was 1.73- and 2.77-fold higher than that of cells treated with CT-MEs and tripterine, respectively, which was associated with mitochondrial-targeted delivery of tripterine. Moreover, Tf-CT-MEs was capable of significantly downregulating the cellular level of antiapoptotic proteins and arrested cell proliferation in the G2/M phase. Conclusion: Taken together, Tf-CT-MEs holds promising potential to be an efficient drug delivery system for combinational therapy of cervical cancer. Keywords: tripterine, coix seed oil, microemulsion, deep penetration, anti-cervical cancer

Ding Qu,1,2 Mingjian Liu,1 Mengmeng Huang,1,2 Lixiang Wang,1 Yan Chen,1,2 Congyan Liu,1,2 Yuping Liu1,2 1Research Center for Multicomponent Traditional Medicine and Microecology, Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, 2Research Center for Multicomponent Traditional Medicine and Microecology, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China Abstract: A nanosized drug delivery platform with a combination of rational components and tumor targeting is significant for enhancement of anticancer therapy and reduction of side effects. In this study, we developed a octanoyl galactose ester-modified microemulsion system self-assembled by coix seed components (Gal(oct)-C-MEs), which improved the tumor accumulation through asialoglycoprotein receptor-mediated endocytosis and promoted the antitumor efficacy through multicomponent-mediated synergistic effect. Octanoyl galactose ester (Gal(oct)) with a yield of 82.3% was synthesized through a green enzymatic reaction and multidimensional characterization. Gal(oct)-C-MEs with a spherical shape had a small and uniform particle size (58.49±1.03 nm), narrow polydispersity index (0.09±0.01) and neutral surface charge (-5.82±0.57 mV). In the cellular uptake studies, the internalized Gal(oct)-C-ME was 2.28-fold higher relative to that of coix seed component-based microemulsions (C-MEs). The half-maximal inhibitory concentration of Gal(oct)-C-MEs against HepG2 cells was 46.5±2.4 µg/mL, which was notably higher than that of C-MEs. Importantly, the intratumor fluorescence of HepG2 xenograft-bearing nude mice treated with Cy5/Gal(oct)-C-MEs was 1.9-fold higher relative to treatment with Cy5/C-MEs. In the study of antitumor efficacy in vivo, HepG2 xenograft-bearing nude mice intragastrically administered Gal(oct)-C-MEs for 14 days exhibited the strongest inhibition of tumor growth and the lowest toxicity against liver and kidney among all the treatments. In summary, Gal(oct)-C-ME, as a highly effective and safe anticancer drug delivery system, showed promising potential for hepatoma therapy. Keywords: coix seed oil, coixan, multicomponent-based microemulsion, hepatic targeting, antihepatoma, oral drug delivery system

The accumulation and penetration of antitumor drugs in tumor tissues are directly related to their antitumor effects. The particle size of the nanodrug delivery system is one of the most important factors for the accumulation and penetration of antitumor drugs within tumor tissues. Generally, nanodelivery systems of intermediate size (100–120 nm) are capable of efficient accumulation owing to prolonged circulation and enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect; however, smaller ones (20–40 nm) are effective for deep penetration within tumor tissue. Currently a conventional drug delivery system cannot possess two types of optimal sizes, simultaneously. To solve this and to enhance cervical cancer treatment, a furin-responsive triterpenine-based liposomal complex (PEGcleavable Tf-CTM/L), with Tf-CTM (transferrin-modified tripterine-loaded coix seed oil microemulsion) in core, coated with a thermo-sensitive lipid and a kind of PEG shell modified with a furin-cleavable peptide was developed to improve tumor-specific accumulation and penetration. Herein, PEGcleavable Tf-CTM/L was capable of efficient accumulation because of EPR effect. The PEG shells could timely detach under stimulation of overexpressed furin protein to solve the problem of the steric hindrance dilemma. The small-sized Tf-CTM released under stimulation of tumor microthermal environment in cervical cancer, which was efficient with regards to deep penetration at tumor sites. Notably, compared to the use of triterpenine alone, PEGcleavable Tf-CTM/L promoted anticervical efficacy and displayed diminished systemic toxicity by efficient accumulation and deep penetration of antitumor drugs within tumor tissues. Our study provides a new strategy, and holds promising potential for anticervical cancer treatment.

The aim of this study was to develop an amphipathic polyethylene glycol (PEG) derivative that was bi-terminally modified with celastrol and ginsenoside Rh2 (Celastrol-PEG-G Rh2). Such derivative was capable of forming novel, celastrol-loaded polymeric micelles (CG-M) for endo/lysosomal delivery and thereby synergistic treatment of lung cancer. Celastrol-PEG-G Rh2 with a yield of 55.6% was first synthesized and characterized. Its critical micellar concentration was 1 × 10−5 M, determined by pyrene entrapment method. CG-M had a small particle size of 121.53 ± 2.35 nm, a narrow polydispersity index of 0.214 ± 0.001 and a moderately negative zeta potential of –23.14 ± 3.15 mV. Celastrol and G Rh2 were rapidly released from CG-M under acidic and enzymatic conditions, but slowly released in normal physiological environments. In cellular studies, the internalization of celastrol and G Rh2 by human non-small cell lung cancer (A549) cells treated with CG-M was 5.8-fold and 1.8-fold higher than that of non-micelle control. Combinational therapy of celastrol and G Rh2 using CG-M exhibited synergistic anticancer activities in cell apoptosis and proliferation assays via rapid drug release within endo/lysosomes. Most importantly, the celastrol in CG-M exhibited a long elimination half-life of 445.3 ± 43.5 min and an improved area under the curve of 645060.8 ± 63640.7 ng/mL/h, that were 1.03-fold and 2.44-fold greater than those of non-micelle control, respectively. These findings suggest that CG-M is a promising vector for precisely releasing anticancer drugs within the tumor cells, and thereby exerts an improved synergistic anti-lung cancer effect.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is the major underlying cause of the low 5-year survival rate of esophageal carcinoma. In this study, we developed a novel microemulsion system (SD-ME) co-loaded with docetaxel (DTX) and Schizandrin A, a potent chemotherapeutic agent and a potential drug resistance modulator, respectively. In the physicochemical characterization studies, SD-ME displayed a well-defined spherical shape and size (56.62 ± 4.16 nm), a narrow polydispersity index (PDI, 0.132 ± 0.002), and a negative surface charge (−19.81 ± 3.11 mv). In the cellular uptake studies, SD-ME with a DTX concentration of 30 μg/mL exhibited a 3.9-fold enhancement of DTX internalization in DTX-resistant EC109 (EC109/DDR) cells in comparison to that observed for EC109 cells, and the mechanisms were associated with reducing P-gp expression and inhibiting P-gp ATPease. The half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of DTX and SD-ME against EC109/DDR cells were 40.57 ± 0.39 and 3.59 ± 0.06 μg/mL, respectively. Likewise, the apoptotic rate of EC109/DDR treated with SD-ME increased up to 20-fold compared to that observed with free DTX. In anticancer efficacy studies in vivo, SD-ME markedly retarded the tumor growth of nude mice bearing EC109/DDR tumor xenografts compared with D-ME and free DTX throughout the duration of study. Consequently, mice treated with SD-ME had the highest survival rate (37.5%) during the observation period (70 days). In addition, there were no apparent side effects after the administration of SD-ME. Overall, our study provides evidence for SD-ME as an effective drug delivery system for enhanced MDR tumor treatment.

The butyryl galactose ester-modified coix component microemulsions (But-Gal-CMEs) was developed for enhanced liver tumor-specific targeting. The study was aimed to evaluate the hepatoma-targeting potential of But-Gal-CMEs in vitro and in vivo. But-Gal-CMEs with a uniform spherical shape exhibited a small particle size (56.68 ± 0.07 nm), a narrow polydispersity (PDI, 0.144 ± 0.005) and slightly negative surface charge (−0.102 ± 0.008 mV). In the cell uptake studies, But-Gal-CMEs showed a significant enhancement on the intracellular fluorescent intensity on HepG2 cells model, which was 1.93-fold higher relative to coix component microemulsions (CMEs). The IC50 of But-Gal-CMEs against HepG2 cells was 64.250 μg/mL, which was notably stronger than that of CMEs. In the cell apoptosis studies, compared with CMEs, But-Gal-CMEs (50 μg/mL) treatment resulted in a 1.34-fold rise in total apoptosis cells of HepG2. In the biodistribution studies in vivo, the intratumorous fluorescence of Cy5-loaded But-Gal-CME...

A hepatic tumor bitargeted microemulsions drug delivery system using coix seed oil and coix seed polysaccharide (CP) acting as anticancer components, as well as functional excipients, was developed for enhanced tumor-specific accumulation by CP-mediated enhancement on passive tumor targeting and modification of galactose stearate (tumor-targeted ligand). In the physicochemical characteristics studies, galactose stearate-modified coix seed multicomponent microemulsions containing 30% CP (w%) (Gal-C-MEs) had a well-defined spherical shape with a small size (47.63 ± 1.41 nm), a narrow polydispersity index (PDI, 0.101 ± 0.002), and a nearly neutral surface charge (-4.37 ± 1.76 mV). The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of Gal-C-MEs against HepG2 cells was 70.2 μg/mL, which decreased by 1.8-fold in comparison with that of coix seed multicomponent microemulsions (C-MEs). The fluorescence intensity of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-loaded Gal-C-MEs (FITC-Gal-C-MEs) internalized by HepG2 cells was 1.8-fold higher than that of FITC-loaded C-MEs (FIT C-C-MEs), but the cellular uptake of the latter became reduce by 1.6-fold when the weight ratio of CP decreased up to 10%. In the cell apoptosis studies, C-MEs (containing 30% CP) did not show a significant difference with Gal-C-MEs, but exhibited 3.3-fold and 1.5-fold increase relative to C-MEs containing 10% CP and 20% CP, respectively. In the in vivo tumor targeting studies, Cy5-loaded Gal-C-MEs (Cy5-Gal-C-MEs), notably distributed in the tumor sites and still found even at 48 h post-administration, displayed the strongest capability of tumor tissue accumulation and retention among all the test groups. Most importantly, Gal-C-MEs had stronger inhibition of tumor growth, prolonged survival time and more effectively tumor cell apoptosis induction in comparison with C-MEs containing different amounts of CP, which further confirmed that a certain amount of CP and tumor-targeted ligand were of great importance to potent anticancer efficacy. The aforementioned results suggested that Gal-C-MEs presented promising potential as a highly effective and safe anticancer drug delivery system for enhanced liver cancer delivery.

Ding Qu,1,* Wenjie Sun,1,2,* Yan Chen,1,2 Jing Zhou,1 Congyan Liu11Key Laboratory of New Drug Delivery System of Chinese Materia Medica, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Chinese Medicine, 2Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, People's Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workAbstract: A rapid synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using Agrimoniae herba extract as reducing agent and stabilizer (A. herba-conjugated AgNPs [AH-AgNPs]) were designed, characterized, and evaluated for antitumor therapy feasibility. In this study, critical factors in the preparation of silver nanoparticles, including extraction time, reaction temperature, the concentration of AgNO3, and A. herba extract amount, were investigated using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. AH-AgNPs with well-defined spherical shape, homogeneous distributional small size (30.34 nm), narrow polydispersity index (0.142), and high negative zeta potential (−36.8 mV) were observed by transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. Furthermore, the results of X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy further indicated successful preparation of AH-AgNPs. Acceptable long-term storage stability of AH-AgNPs was also confirmed. More importantly, AH-AgNPs displayed significantly higher antiproliferative effect against a human lung carcinoma cell line (A549 cells) compared with A. herba extract and bare AgNPs prepared by sodium citrate. The half-maximal inhibitory concentrations of AH-AgNPs, bare AgNPs, and A. herba extract were 38.13 µg · mL-1, 184.87 µg · mL-1, and 1.147 × 104 µg · mL-1, respectively. It is suggested that AH-AgNPs exhibit a strong antineoplastic effect on A549 cells, pointing to feasibility of antitumor treatment in the future.Keywords: rapid synthesis, Agrimoniae herba extract, silver nanoparticles, A549 cells, antitumor

Epimedium spp. is commonly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Epimedins A, B, and C are three major bioactive flavonoids found in Epimedium spp. that share similar chemical structures. In this study, the intestinal absorption mechanism of these three compounds was investigated using the Caco-2 cell monolayer model in both the apical-to-basolateral (A-B) and the basolateral-to-apical (B-A) direction. The absorption permeability (PAB) of epimedins A, B, and C were extremely low and increased as the concentration of the epimedins increased from 5 to 20 μM, but, at 40 μM, the PAB values were reduced. Meanwhile, the amount of transported compounds increased in a time-dependent manner. The PAB of epimedins A and C were significantly increased and efflux ratios decreased in the presence of verapamil (an inhibitor of P-glycoprotein) and dipyridamole (an inhibitor of breast cancer resistance protein) while, in the presence of MK571 (an inhibitor of multidrug resistance proteins), the absorption of epimedins A and C did not change significantly, indicating that P-gp and BCRP might be involved in the transport of epimedins A and C. The PAB of epimedin B significantly increased while its secretory permeability (PBA) significantly decreased in the presence of dipyridamole, indicating that BCRP might be involved in the transport of epimedin B. No obvious changes in the transport of epimedin B were observed in the presence of verapamil and MK571. In summary, our results clearly demonstrate, for the first time, that poor bioavailability of these three prenylated flavonoids is the result of poor intrinsic permeability and efflux by apical efflux transporters.

The aim of this study was to compare the significance of the intestinal hydrolysis of prenylated flavonoids in Herba Epimedii by an intestinal enzyme and flora. Flavonoids were incubated at 37 °C with rat intestinal enzyme and intestinal flora. HPLC-UV was used to calculate the metabolic rates of the parent drug in the incubation and LC/MS/MS was used to determine the chemical structures of metabolites generated by different flavonoid glycosides. Rates of flavonoid metabolism by rat intestinal enzyme were quicker than those of intestinal flora. The sequence of intestinal flora metabolic rates was icariin > epimedin B > epimedin A > epimedin C > baohuoside I, whereas the order of intestinal enzyme metabolic rates was icariin > epimedin A > epimedin C > epimedin B > baohuoside I. Meanwhile, the LC/MS/MS graphs showed that icariin produced three products, epimedin A/B/C had four and baohuoside I yielded one product in incubations of both intestinal enzyme and flora, which were more than the results of HPLC-UV due to the fact LC/MS/MS has lower detectability and higher sensitivity. Moreover, the outcomes indicated that the rate of metabolization of flavonoids by intestinal enzyme were faster than those of intestinal flora, which was consistent with the HPLC-UV results. In conclusion, the metabolic pathways of the same components by intestinal flora and enzyme were the same. What’s more, an intestinal enzyme such as lactase phlorizin hydrolase exhibited a more significant metabolic role in prenylated flavonoids of Herba Epimedi compared with intestinal flora.

Previously, we have developed a multicomponent-based microemulsion composed of etoposide, coix seed oil, and ginsenoside Rh2 (ECG-MEs). In this study, our goal was to validate the feasibility of ECG-MEs in lung cancer treatment and explore the mechanism underling the enhanced antitumor efficacy. The optimal weight ratio of ginsenoside Rh2 (G-Rh2) in ECG-MEs was determined as 3% (wt%), that was capable of forming the microemulsion readily with small particle size and high drug encapsulation efficiency. In cellular studies, the intracellular fluorescence of human non-small cell lung cancer (A549) cells treated with fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled ECG-MEs (FITC/ECG-MEs) was significantly higher than that of various controls, leading to the obviously synergistic anticancer activities in cytotoxicity and in vitro cell apoptosis induction. The anticancer efficacy in vivo results showed that ECG-MEs markedly inhibited the growth of A549 tumor xenografts, potently induced tumor cells apoptosis, and obviously prolonged the survival time of mice. Of note, the mechanisms of enhanced anticancer efficiency were connected with the small size-mediated deep tumor penetration and increase in serum concentration of T helper 1 (Th1) cytokines. In summary, ECG-MEs exerting the rational drug combination strategy offers a solid evidence for lung cancer treatment, and has a promising potential for clinical application.

Treatment for multiple myeloma (MM) with a combined strategy of bone and tumor targeting remains a crucial technical challenge due to the incorporation of various functional components into one single system. Here, we developed dioleoyl phosphatidic acid (DOPA)-based paclitaxel (PTX)-loaded liposomes with modifications of alendronate and transferrin (Ald-/Tf-modified PTX-L), which were capable of bone affinity mediated by phosphate groups in DOPA and alendronate, and tumor targeting offered by transferrin. Ald-/Tf-modified PTX-L had clear and well-defined spherical shape with an intermediated size of 118.8 ± 4.8 nm, a highly negative surface charge of −46.9 ± 6.8 mV and a drug entrapment efficiency (DEE) of approximately 80%. When the pH was changed from pH 7.4 to pH 6.5, the accumulative release of PTX from Ald-/Tf-modified PTX-L significantly increased from 26.7 ± 3.7% to 41.7 ± 4.9%. Importantly, liposomes based on DOPA displayed an obviously stronger affinity with hydroxyapatite (HAp) than 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (DSPE)-based liposomes. Compared to PTX-L, Ald-/Tf-modified PTX-L exhibited obvious improvement of cytotoxicity (IC50 = 1.25 ± 0.09 μg/mL), significant enhancement on PTX intracellular accumulation (16.58 ± 0.62 μg/mg) and notable promotion to apoptosis induction (45.21 ± 3.10%) toward myeloma (MM1s) cells. In this study of antitumor efficacy, Ald-/Tf-modified PTX-L with bone-specific targeting showed a significant effect on extending the median survival time (48 days) and terminal survival time (> 58 days) against the MM1S-injected nude mice among all formulations. The results suggested that Ald-/Tf-modified PTX-L had potential as an efficient anticancer drug delivery system for MM therapy.

Development of combination photothermal-chemotherapy platform is of great interest for enhancing antitumor efficacy and inhibiting tumor recurrence, which supports selective and dose-controlled delivery of heat and anticancer drugs to tumor. Here, an injectable nanocomposite hydrogel incorporating PEGylated gold nanorods (GNRs) and paclitaxel-loaded chitosan polymeric micelles (PTX-M) is developed in pursuit of improved local tumor control. After intratumoral injection, both GNRs and PTX-M can be simultaneously delivered and immobilized in the tumor tissue by the thermo-sensitive hydrogel matrix. Exposure to the laser irradiation induces the GNR-mediated photothermal damage confined to the tumor with sparing the surrounding normal tissue. Synergistically, the co-delivered PTX-M shows prolonged tumor retention with the sustained release of anticancer drug to efficiently kill the residual tumor cells that evade the photothermal ablation due to the heterogeneous heating in the tumor region. This combination photothermal-chemotherapy presents superior effects on suppressing the tumor recurrence and prolonging the survival in the Heps-bearing mice, compared to the photothermal therapy alone.

Ding Qu,1 Yihua Ma,1 Wenjie Sun,1,2 Yan Chen,1 Jing Zhou,1 Congyan Liu,1 Mengmeng Huang1 1Key Laboratory of New Drug Delivery System of Chinese Materia Medica, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Chinese Medicine, 2Department ofPharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China Abstract: A microemulsion-based synergistic dual-drug codelivery system was developed for enhanced cell apoptosis by transporting coix seed oil and etoposide into A549 (human lung carcinoma) cells simultaneously. Results obtained by dynamic light scattering showed that an etoposide (VP16)-loaded coix seed oil microemulsion (EC-ME) delivery system had a small size around 35 nm, a narrow polydispersity index, and a slightly negative surface charge. The encapsulating efficiency and total drug loading rate were 97.01% and 45.48%, respectively, by high-performance liquid chromatography. The release profiles at various pH values showed an obvious pH-responsive difference, with the accumulated amount of VP16 released at pH 4.5 (and pH 5.5) being 2.7-fold higher relative to that at pH 7.4. Morphologic alteration (particle swelling) associated with a mildly acidic pH environment was found on transmission electron microscopy. In the cell study, the EC-ME system showed a significantly greater antiproliferative effect toward A549 cells in comparison with free VP16 and the mixture of VP16 and coix seed oil. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration of the EC-ME system was 3.9-fold and 10.4-fold lower relative to that of free VP16 and a mixture of VP16 and coix seed oil, respectively. Moreover, fluorescein isothiocyanate and VP16 (the green fluorescent probe and entrapped drug, respectively) were efficiently internalized into the cells by means of coix seed oil microemulsion through intuitive observation and quantitative measurement. Importantly, an EC-ME system containing 20 µg/mL of VP16 showed a 3.3-fold and 3.5-fold improvement in induction of cell apoptosis compared with the VP-16-loaded microemulsion and free VP16, respectively. The EC-ME combination strategy holds promise as an efficient drug delivery system for induction of apoptosis and treatment of lung cancer. Keywords: microemulsion, synergistic effect, dual-drug codelivery, coix seed oil, apoptosis induction

Wenjie Sun,1,2,* Ding Qu,1,* Yihua Ma,1 Yan Chen,1,2 Congyan Liu,1 Jing Zhou11Key Laboratory of New Drug Delivery System of Chinese Materia Medica, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Chinese Medicine, 2Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workAbstract: Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are widely used as antibacterial products in various fields. Recent studies have suggested that AgNPs need an appropriate stabilizer to improve their stability. Some antibacterial traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) contain various reductive components, which can not only stabilize AgNPs but also enhance their antimicrobial activity. In this study, we developed a series of novel AgNPs using a TCM extract as a stabilizer, reducing agent, and antimicrobial agent (TCM-AgNPs). A storage stability investigation of the TCM-AgNPs suggested a significant improvement when compared with bare AgNPs. Further, conjugation of TCMs onto the AgNP surface resulted in stronger antimicrobial potency on antibacterial evaluation using Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Staphylococcus aureus with minimum inhibitory concentration 50% (MIC50) ratios (and minimum bactericidal concentration 90% [MBC90] ratios) of AgNPs to respective TCM-AgNPs as assessment indices. Among these, P. cuspidatum Sieb. et-conjugated AgNPs (P.C.-AgNPs) had the advantage of a combination of TCMs and AgNPs and was studied in detail with regard to its synthesis and characterization. The extraction time, reaction temperature, and concentrations of AgNO3 and Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb. et extract were critical factors in the preparation of P.C.-AgNPs. Further, the results of X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy indicated successful preparation of P.C.-AgNPs. In representative studies, P.C.-AgNPs showed a well-defined spherical shape, a homogeneous small particle size (36.78 nm), a narrow polydispersity index (0.105), and a highly negative zetapotential (-23.6 mV) on transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. These results indicate that TCM-AgNPs have a potential role as antibacterial agents in the clinic setting.Keywords: traditional Chinese medicine, extract, silver nanoparticles, stability, antibacterial, Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb. et

Ding Qu, Junjie He, Congyan Liu, Jing Zhou, Yan ChenKey Laboratory of New Drug Delivery System of Chinese Materia Medica, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Chinese Medicine, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of ChinaAbstract: Ganoderma lucidum triterpene-loaded microemulsions (TMEs) using Coix lacryma-jobi (adlay) seed oil as oil phase were prepared, characterized, and evaluated for enhanced antitumor activity. Ternary phase diagrams for the TMEs were constructed and the optimal preparation was developed. Transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering showed that this formulation had a well defined spherical shape, a homogeneous distribution, a small size, and a narrow polydispersity index. The drug-loading rate was determined to be 9.87% by ultraviolet spectrophotometry, and acceptable stability under various stimulations in vitro was confirmed. Importantly, the TME formulation showed a significantly greater antiproliferative effect towards human lung carcinoma (A549) cells and murine lung tumor (Lewis) cells in comparison with suspension formulations containing triterpene and adlay seed oil as a positive control. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration of the TMEs was about 0.62 mg crude drug per mL, being 2.5-fold improved relative to that of the corresponding suspension formulation, but no significant cytotoxicity was observed for the bare microemulsion in A549 cells and Lewis cells. In vivo, the TME formulation showed markedly enhanced antitumor efficacy in a xenograft model of Lewis lung cancer after intragastric administration. Compared with cyclophosphamide, the TME formulation showed similar antitumor activity but less general toxicity. These results indicate the feasibility of using a microemulsion to increase the solubility of triterpene and adlay. TMEs hold promise as an efficient drug delivery system for the treatment of lung cancer.Keywords: microemulsion, Ganoderma lucidum, triterpene, adlay seed oil, lung cancer

Background: The skin of Bufo bufo gargarizans Cantor, rich in bufadienolides, peptides, and alkaloids, has approved pharmacological activity for preliminary anti-liver and lung tumor treatment. However, few studies have systematically focused on the influence of the producing regions on the content and antitumor activity of the active constituents in toad skins. Objective: This study aims to compare toad skins obtained from six different regions in China (Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, Hebei, Jiangxi, and Shandong province) for their bufadienolide and alkaloid content, and their cytotoxic activity on two lung carcinoma cell lines (SPC-A-1 cells and A549 cells). Materials and Methods: High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to quantificationally determine four bufadienolides, which included bufotalin, bufalin, cinobufagin, and resibufogenin in toad skins, from six different regions, respectively. In addition, an ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometer was also employed to identify the content of the total alkaloids using 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) as the reference substance. An MTT assay was performed to compare the antiproliferative effects of the toad skins' ethanolic extracts from the different regions against SPC-A-1 and A549 cells. Results: In this study, the toad skins from Jiangsu province had the highest amount of bufadienolides (472.6 μg/g crude drug) and alkaloids (1.51 mg/g crude drug). Meanwhile, according to the extract, it exhibited the strongest cytotoxic effect against the lung carcinoma cell line (SPC-A-1 cells and A549 cells) with IC 50 values of 24.82 ± 0.76 and 23.77 ± 0.63 μg crude drug/mL, respectively. Conclusion: The toad skins that originated from the Jiangsu province, have comparatively greater advantages over samples from other regions as far as active constituent content and potential anti-lung cancer activity is concerned, suggesting that it can be a promising chemotherapeutic agent in lung cancer therapy, in further studies.

Ling Yuan,1 Congyan Liu,2 Yan Chen,2 Zhenhai Zhang,2 Lei Zhou,1 Ding Qu2 1Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, 2Key Laboratory of New Drug Delivery System of Chinese Materia Medica, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antitumor effect of cell-penetrating peptide-coated tripterine-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers (CT-NLC) on prostate tumor cells in vitro and in vivo. Methods: CT-NLC were developed to improve the hydrophilicity of tripterine. The antiproliferative effects of CT-NLC, tripterine-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers (T-NLC), and free tripterine in a human prostatic carcinoma cell line (PC-3) and a mouse prostate carcinoma cell line (RM-1) were evaluated using an MTT assay. The advantage of CT-NLC over T-NLC and free tripterine with regard to antitumor activity in vivo was evaluated in a prostate tumor-bearing mouse model. The induced tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 cytokine content was investigated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to determine the effect of CT-NLC, T-NLC, and free tripterine on immune responses. Histologic and TUNEL assays were carried out to investigate the mechanisms of tumor necrosis and apoptosis. Results: CT-NLC, T-NLC, and free tripterine showed high antiproliferative activity in a dose-dependent manner, with an IC50 of 0.60, 0.81, and 1.02 µg/mL in the PC-3 cell line and 0.41, 0.54, and 0.89 µg/mL in the RM-1 cell line after 36 hours. In vivo, the tumor inhibition rates for cyclophosphamide, high-dose (4 mg/kg) and low-dose (2 mg/kg) tripterine, high-dose (4 mg/kg) and low-dose (2 mg/kg) T-NLC, high-dose (4 mg/kg) and low-dose (2 mg/kg) CT-NLC were 76.51%, 37.07%, 29.53%, 63.56%, 48.25%, 72.68%, and 54.50%, respectively, showing a dose-dependent pattern. The induced tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 cytokine content after treatment with CT-NLC and T-NLC was significantly higher than that of high-dose tripterine. Moreover, CT-NLC showed the expected advantage of inducing necrosis and apoptosis in prostate tumor cells. Conclusion: CT-NLC noticeably enhanced antitumor activity in vitro and in vivo and showed dramatically improved cytotoxicity in normal cells in comparison with free tripterine. In summary, CT-NLC could be used as a promising drug delivery system for the treatment of prostate cancer. Keywords: cell-penetrating peptide, nanostructured lipid carriers, tripterine, prostate cancer, antitumor activity