Design of smart GE11-PLGA/PEG-PLGA blend nanoparticulate platforms for parenteral administration of hydrophilic macromolecular drugs: synthesis, preparation and in vitro/ex vivo characterization

摘要

Active drug targeting and controlled release of hydrophilic macromolecular drugs represent crucial points in designing efficient polymeric drug delivery nanoplatforms. In the present work EGFR-targeted polylactide-co-glycolide (PLGA) nanoparticles were made by a blend of two different PLGA-based polymers. The first, GE11-PLGA, in which PLGA was functionalized with GE11, a small peptide and EGFR allosteric ligand, able to give nanoparticles selective targeting features. The second polymer was a PEGylated PLGA (PEG-PLGA) aimed at improving nanoparticles hydrophilicity and stealth features. GE11 and GE11-PLGA were custom synthetized through a simple and inexpensive method. The nano precipitation technique was exploited for the preparation of polymeric nanoparticles composed by a 1:1 weight ratio between GE11-PLGA and PEG-PLGA, obtaining smart nanoplatforms with proper size for parenteral administration (143.9 +/- 5.0 nm). In vitro cellular uptake in EGFR-overexpressing cell line (A549) demonstrated an active internalization of GE11-functionalized nanoparticles. GE11-PLGA/PEG-PLGA blend nanoparticles were loaded with Myoglobin, a model hydrophilic macromolecule, reaching a good loading (2.42% respect to the theoretical 4.00% w/w) and a prolonged release over 60 days. GE11-PLGA/PEG-PLGA blend nanoparticles showed good in vitro stability for 30 days in physiological saline solution at 4 degrees C and for 24 h in pH 7.4 or pH 5.0 buffer at 37 degrees C respectively, giving indications about potential storage and administration conditions. Furthermore ex vivo stability study in human plasma using fluorescence Single Particle Tracking (fSPT) assessed good GE11-PLGA/PEG-PLGA nanoparticles dimensional stability after 1 and 4 h. Thanks to the versatility in polymeric composition and relative tunable nanoparticles features in terms of drug incorporation and release, GE11-PLGAJPEG-PLGA blend NPs can be considered highly promising as smart nanoparticulate platforms for the treatment of diseases characterized by EGFR overexpression by parenteral administration. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.