mPEG-PLGA nanoparticles investigated as part of dual-drug chemotherapeutic treatment of brain cancer

PolySciTech division of Akina, Inc. (www.polyscitech.com) provides a wide array of research products including biodegradable block copolymer mPEG-PLGA. Recently, this polymer was used for generating nanoparticles loaded with two chemotherapeutic drugs. These include paclitaxel, an anti-mitotic drug derived from the Pacific yew tree commonly used in treatment of cancer, and Temozolomide, a drug which acts to damage DNA of tumor cells making it unreadable and triggering cell-death.  The co-delivery of these chemotherapeutic agents in a nanoparticle system was found to significantly reduce brain tumor cell growth and proliferation in mice. Read more: Xu, Y., M. Shen, Y. Li, Y. Sun, Y. Teng, Y. Wang, and Y. Duan. "The synergic antitumor effects of paclitaxel and temozolomide co-loaded in mPEG-PLGA nanoparticles on glioblastoma cells." Oncotarget (2016).  http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/26956046

“Abstract: To get better chemotherapy efficacy, the optimal synergic effect of Paclitaxel (PTX) and Temozolomide (TMZ) on glioblastoma cells lines was investigated. A dual drug-loaded delivery system based on mPEG-PLGA nanoparticles (NPs) was developed to potentiate chemotherapy efficacy for glioblastoma. PTX/TMZ-NPs were prepared with double emulsification solvent evaporation method and exhibited a relatively uniform diameter of 206.3 ± 14.7 nm. The NPs showed sustained release character. Cytotoxicity assays showed the best synergistic effects were achieved when the weight ratios of PTX to TMZ were 1:5 and 1:100 on U87 and C6 cells, respectively. PTX/TMZ-NPs showed better inhibition effect to U87 and C6 cells than single drug NPs or free drugs mixture. PTX/TMZ-NPs (PTX: TMZ was 1:5(w/w)) significantly inhibited the tumor growth in the subcutaneous U87 mice model. These results indicate that coordinate administration of PTX and TMZ combined with NPs is an efficient method for glioblastoma.”