title: pH-responsive lyotropic liquid crystals and their potential therapeutic role in cancer treatment.
abstract: A weak amphiphilic base, pyridinylmethyl linoleate, is blended with monolinolein, yielding mesophases with a pH-induced hexagonal-to-cubic transition at pH ≤ 5.5. We show the potential therapeutic role of this mesophase in treating cancerous tissues exploiting their more acidic pH compared to healthy tissues. In vitro release studies with doxorubicin on HT29 human colon cancer cells show a 10-fold faster release and 3-fold increased efficiency for killing cancer cells at pH 5.5 versus pH 7.4, demonstrating the potential of this strategy in cancer treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences & Technology, ETH Zürich, 8092 Zürich, Switzerland. raffaele.mezzenga@hest.ethz.ch.
authors.forename: Renata
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Negrini
authors.forename: Wye-Khay
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Fong
authors.forename: Ben J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Boyd
authors.forename: Raffaele
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mezzenga
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000737:chemistry*; D005989:Glycerides / Q000737:chemistry; D019073:HT29 Cells; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D019787:Linoleic Acid / Q000737:chemistry; D050866:Liquid Crystals / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D004337:Drug Carriers; D005989:Glycerides; D004317:Doxorubicin; D019787:Linoleic Acid; C048627:monolinolein