Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug Delivery
Although doxorubicin (dox), an anthracycline antibiotic, is widely used and effective in treating cancer, its treatment efficiency is limited by low blood plasma solubility, poor pharmacokinetics, and adverse side effects, including irreversible cardiotoxicity. Moreover, cancer cells often develop d...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-02-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/23/4/2301 |
| _version_ | 1797479228103458816 |
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| author | Sonja Dragojevic Lindsay Turner Drazen Raucher |
| author_facet | Sonja Dragojevic Lindsay Turner Drazen Raucher |
| author_sort | Sonja Dragojevic |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Although doxorubicin (dox), an anthracycline antibiotic, is widely used and effective in treating cancer, its treatment efficiency is limited by low blood plasma solubility, poor pharmacokinetics, and adverse side effects, including irreversible cardiotoxicity. Moreover, cancer cells often develop drug resistance over time, which decreases the efficacy of anti-cancer drugs, including dox. In this study, we examine a macromolecular drug delivery system for its ability to specifically deliver doxorubicin to cancer cells with and without drug resistance. This drug delivery system consists of a multi-part macromolecule, which includes the following: elastin-like polypeptide (ELP), cell penetrating peptide (CPP), a cleavable linker (releasing at low pH), and a derivative of doxorubicin. ELP is thermally responsive and improves drug solubility, while the CPP mediates cellular uptake of macromolecules. We compared cytotoxicity of two doxorubicin derivatives, where one is cleavable (DOXO) and contains a pH-sensitive linker and releases dox in an acidic environment, and the other is non-cleavable (ncDox) doxorubicin. Cytotoxicity, apoptosis, cell cycle distribution and mechanism of action of these constructs were tested and compared between dox-responsive MCF-7 and dox-resistant NCI/ADR cell lines. Dox delivered by the ELP construct is comparably toxic to both sensitive and drug resistant cell lines, compared to unconjugated doxorubicin, and given the pharmacokinetic and targeting benefits conveyed by conjugation to ELP, these biopolymers have potential to overcome dox resistance in vivo. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T21:43:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-24c19547f5144c4987868b0d69ac4d88 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T21:43:48Z |
| publishDate | 2022-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-24c19547f5144c4987868b0d69ac4d882023-11-23T20:23:16ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences1661-65961422-00672022-02-01234230110.3390/ijms23042301Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug DeliverySonja Dragojevic0Lindsay Turner1Drazen Raucher2Division of Radiation Oncology, Mayo Clinic and Foundation, 200 First Street, SW, Rochester, MN 55905, USADepartment of Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 North State Street, Jackson, MS 39216, USADepartment of Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 North State Street, Jackson, MS 39216, USAAlthough doxorubicin (dox), an anthracycline antibiotic, is widely used and effective in treating cancer, its treatment efficiency is limited by low blood plasma solubility, poor pharmacokinetics, and adverse side effects, including irreversible cardiotoxicity. Moreover, cancer cells often develop drug resistance over time, which decreases the efficacy of anti-cancer drugs, including dox. In this study, we examine a macromolecular drug delivery system for its ability to specifically deliver doxorubicin to cancer cells with and without drug resistance. This drug delivery system consists of a multi-part macromolecule, which includes the following: elastin-like polypeptide (ELP), cell penetrating peptide (CPP), a cleavable linker (releasing at low pH), and a derivative of doxorubicin. ELP is thermally responsive and improves drug solubility, while the CPP mediates cellular uptake of macromolecules. We compared cytotoxicity of two doxorubicin derivatives, where one is cleavable (DOXO) and contains a pH-sensitive linker and releases dox in an acidic environment, and the other is non-cleavable (ncDox) doxorubicin. Cytotoxicity, apoptosis, cell cycle distribution and mechanism of action of these constructs were tested and compared between dox-responsive MCF-7 and dox-resistant NCI/ADR cell lines. Dox delivered by the ELP construct is comparably toxic to both sensitive and drug resistant cell lines, compared to unconjugated doxorubicin, and given the pharmacokinetic and targeting benefits conveyed by conjugation to ELP, these biopolymers have potential to overcome dox resistance in vivo.https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/23/4/2301drug resistancedoxorubicindrug deliveryelastin-like polypeptide |
| spellingShingle | Sonja Dragojevic Lindsay Turner Drazen Raucher Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug Delivery International Journal of Molecular Sciences drug resistance doxorubicin drug delivery elastin-like polypeptide |
| title | Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug Delivery |
| title_full | Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug Delivery |
| title_fullStr | Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug Delivery |
| title_full_unstemmed | Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug Delivery |
| title_short | Circumventing Doxorubicin Resistance Using Elastin-like Polypeptide Biopolymer-Mediated Drug Delivery |
| title_sort | circumventing doxorubicin resistance using elastin like polypeptide biopolymer mediated drug delivery |
| topic | drug resistance doxorubicin drug delivery elastin-like polypeptide |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/23/4/2301 |
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