Folate decorated PEG-PLA for curcumin delivery to cancer cells

PolySciTech (www.polyscitech.com) provides a wide array of PEG-PLA both methoxy endcapped and reactive derivatives.  Recently these types of polymers were used to generate a folate decorated nanoparticle delivery system for curcumin. Read more: Yang, Chunfen, Hao Chen, Jie Zhao, Xin Pang, Yanwei Xi, and Guangxi Zhai. "Development of a folate-modified curcumin loaded micelle delivery system for cancer targeting." Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces (2014). http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0927776514002318

“Highlights: The folate-modified Curcumin loaded micelles (Cur-FPPs) were prepared by thin-film hydration method. The Cur-FPPs increased the cytotoxicity and cellular uptake of Cur on MCF-7 and HepG2 cells in vitro. The Cur-FPPs prolonged the half-life of Cur in rats. Abstract: Targeted drug delivery system for tumor cells is an appealing platform on enhancing the therapeutic effects and reducing the side effects of the drug. In this study, we developed folate-modified curcumin (Cur) loaded micelles (Cur-FPPs) for cancer chemotherapy. The targeting material, Folate-PEG3000-PLA2000, was synthesized by the amide bond formation reaction. And the Cur loaded micelles were prepared by thin-film hydration method with mPEG2000-PLA2000 (Cur-PPs) or mPEG2000-PLA2000 and Folate-PEG3000-PLA2000 (Cur-FPPs) as carrier. A central composite design (CCD) was used to optimize the formulation, and the optimized Cur-FPPs was prepared with the weight ratio of Folate-PEG3000-PLA2000 and mPEG2000-PLA2000 at 1:9. The average size of the mixed micelles was 70 nm, the encapsulating efficiency and drug-loading were 80.73 ± 0.16% and 4.84 ± 0.01%, respectively. Compared with the Cur propylene glycol solution, the in vitro release of Cur from Cur-FPPs showed a sustained manner. Furthermore, the in vitro cytotoxicity and cellular uptake of Cur-FPPs were significantly enhanced towards MCF-7 and HepG2 cells. The pharmacokinetic studies in rats indicated that a 3-fold increase in the half-life was achieved for Cur loaded micelle formulations relative to solubilized Cur. All the results demonstrated that folate-modified Cur micelles could serve as a potential nanocarrier to improve the solubility and anti-cancer activity of Cur. Keywords: Curcumin; Folate; mPEG-PLA; Micelles”