A series of drug delivery systems based on a sodium alginate derivative were prepared by mixing glycyrrhetinic acid(GA) and doxorubicin(DOX) conjugates at different ratios. GA(a liver-targeting ligand) and DOX(an antitumor drug) were both conjugated to oligomeric glycol monomethyl ether-modified sodium alginate(ALG-mOEG) for prolonged duration of action. These NP-based delivery systems exhibited active cell uptake and cytotoxicity in vitro and liver-targeted distribution and anti-tumor activity in vivo. In addition, nanoparticles with a 1:1(W:W) ratio of GA-ALG-mOEG and DOXALG-mOEG(NPs-3) showed the highest cellular uptake and cytotoxicity in vitro and liver-targeted distribution and antitumor activity in vivo. Specifically, when mixed nanoparticles defined as NPs-3 were injected in mice, liver DOX concentration reached 61.9 μg/g 3 h after injection, and AUC0-∞ and t1/2 of DOX in liver reached 4744.9 μg·h/g and 49.5 h, respectively. In addition, mice receiving a single injection of NPs-3 exhibited much slower tumor growth(88.37% reduction in tumor weight) 16 days after injection compared with placebo. These results indicate that effective cancer treatment may be developed using mixed NP delivery systems with appropriate ratio of targeted ligand and drug.
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