Preparation and in vitro evaluation of actively targetable nanoparticles for SN-38 delivery against HT-29 cell lines

SN-38 (7-ethyl-10-hydroxycamptothecin) is the active metabolite of irinotecan, which is 100-to 1000-fold more cytotoxic than irinotecan. Nevertheless, extreme hydrophobicity of SN-38 has prevented its clinical use. One way of improving the solubility and stability of SN-38 is to formulate the drug into nanoparticles. Folic acid has been widely used as a targeting moiety for various anticancer drugs. For folate-receptor–targeted anticancer therapy, SN-38 nanoparticles were produced using poly-lactide-co-glycolide–polyethylene glycol–folate (PLGA-PEG-FOL) conjugate by emulsification/solvent evaporation method. The FOL-conjugated di-block copolymer was synthesized by coupling the PLGA-PEG-NH2 di-block copolymer with an activated folic acid. The conjugates were used for the formation of SN-38 nanoparticles with an average size of 200 nm in diameter. The SN-38 targeted nanoparticles showed a greater cytotoxicity against HT-29 cancer cells than SN-38 nontargeted nanoparticles. These results suggested that folate-targeted nanoparticles could be a potentially useful delivery system for SN-38 as an anticancer agent.From the Clinical EditorSN-38 is the active metabolite of the chemotherapy agent irinotecan, which is 100-1000 fold more cytotoxic than irinotecan, but its extreme hydrophobicity has prevented its clinical use. In this paper, the authors present a nanotechnology-based approach targeting the folate-receptor with SN-38 loaded nanoparticles, demonstrating stronger cytotoxicity against HT-29 cancer cells than with control nanoparticles.