title: Glycyrrhetinic Acid Mediated Drug Delivery Carriers for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Therapy.
abstract: Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA), the main hydrolysate of glycyrrhizic acid extracted from the root of licorice, has been used in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) therapy. Particularly, GA as a ligand in HCC therapy has been widely explored in different drug delivery systems, including liposomes, micelles, and nanoparticles. There is considerable interest worldwide with respect to the development of GA-modified drug delivery systems due to the extensive presence of GA receptors on the surface of hepatocyte. Up until now, much work has been focused on developing GA-modified drug delivery systems which bear good liver- or hepatocyte-targeted efficiency both in vitro and in vivo. Owing to its contribution in overcoming the limitations of low lipophilicity and poor bioavailability as well as its ability to promote receptor-mediated endocytosis, GA-modified drug delivery systems play an important role in enhancing liver-targeting efficacy and thus are focused on the treatment of HCC. Moreover, since GA-modified delivery systems present more favorable pharmacokinetic properties and hepatocyte-targeting effects, they may be a promising formulation for GA in the treatment of HCC. In this review, we will give an overview of GA-modified novel drug delivery systems, paying attention to their efficacy in treating HCC and discussing their mechanism and the treatment effects.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau , Macau 999078, China.
authors.forename: Yuee
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau , Macau 999078, China.
authors.forename: Yingqi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University , New York 10027, United States.
authors.forename: Hon Fai
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau , Macau 999078, China.
authors.forename: Xiaobin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau , Macau 999078, China.
authors.forename: Chengwei
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau , Macau 999078, China.
authors.forename: Meiwan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004337:Drug Carriers; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D006034:Glycyrrhetinic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D004337:Drug Carriers; D006034:Glycyrrhetinic Acid
keywords: GA; anti-HCC; delivery systems; liver-targeting