Self-assembled biodegradable protein-polymer vesicle as a tumor-targeted nanocarrier.
Self-assembled nanostructures based on amphiphilic protein-polymer conjugates have shown great advantages in the field of nanomedicine such as inherent biocompatibility with biosystems because of their excellent performance. Herein, a novel biodegradable protein-polymer conjugate was prepared by covalently linking the tailor-made hydrophobic maleimide-functionalized poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) to hydrophilic bovine serum albumin (BSA) via the maleimide-sulfhydryl coupling reaction. This protein-based conjugate with a biodegradable polyester was reported for the first time, and the obtained biohybrid displayed well-defined structure, excellent biocompatibility and low cytotoxicity, and self-assembly behaviors similar to those of the traditional amphiphilic small molecules and block copolymers. The amphiphilic BSA-PCL conjugate can self-assemble into a nanosized vesicle with a negative surface charge. Furthermore, the self-assembled vesicle based on the BSA-PCL conjugate was functionalized via linking targeting ligand cetuximab to its surface to enhance cell uptake, and the doxorubicin (DOX)-encapsulated cetuximab-functionalized vesicle exhibited enhanced antitumor activity compared with that of free DOX in vitro. These results indicate that the biodegradable protein-polymer conjugate based on BSA and PCL had great potential as a drug delivery vehicle for cancer therapy.
Institute of Nanobiotechnology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composites and Functional Materials, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
Zhongyun
Z
Liu
Chunhong
C
Dong
Xiaomin
X
Wang
Hanjie
H
Wang
Wei
W
Li
Jian
J
Tan
Jin
J
Chang
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000494:pharmacology; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D004337:Drug Carriers; D006801:Humans; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D049329:Nanostructures; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology; D011091:Polyesters / Q000737:chemistry*; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine / Q000737:chemistry*
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D004337:Drug Carriers; D011091:Polyesters; C016240:polycaprolactone; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine