Bifunctional liposomes reduce the chemotherapy resistance of doxorubicin induced by reactive oxygen species

Biomater Sci. 2019 Nov 1;7(11):4782-4789. doi: 10.1039/c9bm00590k. Epub 2019 Sep 16.

Abstract

Doxorubicin (DOX) liposome is a widely used nano-medicine for colorectal cancer treatment. However, doxorubicin therapy increases the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in tumor cells, such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which can stabilize hypoxia-inducible-factor-1α (HIF-1α). In a tumor hypoxic microenvironment, HIF-1 can up-regulate tumor-resistance related proteins, including P-glycoprotein (P-gp), glucose transporter 1 (GLUT-1), and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9), leading to tumor tolerance to chemotherapy. The functional inhibition of HIF-1 can overcome this resistance and enhance the efficacy of tumor therapy. Here, we encapsulated one of the most effective HIF-1 inhibitors, acriflavine (ACF), and DOX in liposomes (DOX-ACF@Lipo) to construct bifunctional liposomes. ACF and DOX, released from DOX-ACF@Lipo, could effectively suppress the function of HIF-1 and the process of DNA replication, respectively. Consequently, the bifunctional liposome has great potential to be applied in clinics to overcome chemotherapy resistance induced by hypoxia.

MeSH terms

  • Acriflavine / chemistry
  • Acriflavine / pharmacology*
  • Animals
  • Antibiotics, Antineoplastic / chemistry
  • Antibiotics, Antineoplastic / pharmacology*
  • Cell Hypoxia / drug effects
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / metabolism
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / pathology
  • Doxorubicin / analogs & derivatives*
  • Doxorubicin / chemistry
  • Doxorubicin / pharmacology
  • Drug Resistance, Neoplasm / drug effects*
  • Humans
  • Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit / metabolism
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred BALB C
  • Neoplasms, Experimental / drug therapy
  • Neoplasms, Experimental / metabolism
  • Neoplasms, Experimental / pathology
  • Particle Size
  • Polyethylene Glycols / chemistry
  • Polyethylene Glycols / pharmacology
  • Reactive Oxygen Species / metabolism*
  • Surface Properties
  • Tumor Microenvironment / drug effects

Substances

  • Antibiotics, Antineoplastic
  • HIF1A protein, human
  • Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit
  • Reactive Oxygen Species
  • liposomal doxorubicin
  • Acriflavine
  • Polyethylene Glycols
  • Doxorubicin