One of the problems encountered for the application of anticancer drugs such as chlorambucil-tempol (CT) is its solubility. CT has a cytotoxicity that proves powerful in in vitro testing against cancer cell lines. Poor solubility means that it cannot be tested or applied in vivo due to lack of ability to target the cancer-specific sites within the body. However, encapsulating CT in a methoxypoly(ethylene glycol)-polylactic-co-glycolic acid (mPEG-PLGA) nanoparticle micelle allows for increased solubility in water. This leads to a controlled drug delivery system wherein the contents of the micelle could be accepted in to the blood stream, and would be able to diffuse for evenly and more measured drug distribution; this would fix the problem of drug delivery and tumor targeting compared to applying CT to the body alone. Studies done on anticancer drugs have focused on drug delivery systems that would have an effect throughout the entire body. The addition of superparamagnetic nanoparticle encapsulation within the mPEG-PLGA micelle along with the cytotoxic CT drug may allow for an alternative delivery system, as well as better tracking through the body. Magnetite (Fe3O4) is a biodegradable magnetic NP that can serve this purpose. The presence of magnetite allows for avoiding the exposure of the hydrophobic interior of the micelle that contains it. If the interior were exposed, there would be adsorption of proteins in the blood; avoiding this allows for extended blood circulation. Theoretically, the magnetite would also allow for specifically targeting cancer sites using electromagnetic fields to specify the location of the whole micelle after being administered, due to its superparamagnetic properties. This would create a novel system for administering anticancer drugs to tumors.The superparamagnetic properties additionally allows for boosted visibility when using an external magnetic field (EMF) such as magnetic resonance imaging machine (MRI).

Encapsulation of superparamagnetic nanoparticles in mPEG-PLGA micelles for targeted drug delivery

249th National Meeting (2015)

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