Paclitaxel-loaded ginsenoside Rg3 liposomes for drug-resistant cancer therapy by dual targeting of the tumor microenvironment and cancer cells

• DOI: 10.1016/j.jare.2022.09.007
• Publication Date: 2022-09-24T08:22:11Z
• Authors: Ying Zhu; Anni Wang; Shuya Zhang; Jisu Kim; Jiaxuan Xia; Fengxue Zhang; Dan Wang; Qi Wang; Jianxin Wang
• Keywords: Lipopolysaccharides; Ginsenoside Rg3; Medicine (General); 0303 health sciences; Science (General); Paclitaxel; Ginsenosides; MCF-7/T tumor; Multidrug resistance; 3. Good health; Q1-390; 03 medical and health sciences; R5-920; Neoplasms; Liposomes; Tumor Microenvironment; Tumor microenvironment remodeling; Humans; Original Article

Inherent or acquired resistance to paclitaxel (PTX) is a pivotal challenge for chemotherapy treatment of multidrug-resistant (MDR) breast cancer. Although various targeted drug-delivery systems, including nanoparticles and liposomes, are effective for MDR cancer treatment, their efficacy is restricted by immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME).Ginsenosides Rg3 was used to formulate unique Rg3-based liposomes loaded with PTX to establish Rg3-PTX-LPs, which were prepared by the thin-film hydration method. The stability of the Rg3-PTX-LPs was evaluated by particle size analysis through dynamic light scattering. The active targeting effect of Rg3-based liposomes was examined in an MCF-7/T xenograft model by an in a vivo imaging system. To evaluate the antitumor activity and mechanism of Rg3-PTX-LP, MTT, apoptosis assays, TAM regulation, and TME remodeling were performed in MCF-7/T cells in vitro and in vivo.Rg3-PTX-LPs could specifically distribute to MCF7/T cancer cells and TME simultaneously, mainly through the recognition of GLUT-1. The drug resistance reversing capability and in vivo antitumor effect of Rg3-PTX-LPs were significantly improved compared with conventional cholesterol liposomes. The TME remodeling mechanisms of Rg3-PTX-LPs included inhibiting IL-6/STAT3/p-STAT3 pathway activation to repolarize protumor M2 macrophages to antitumor M1 phenotype, suppressing myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), decreasing tumor-associated fibroblasts (TAFs) and collagen fibers in TME, and promoting apoptosis of tumor cells. Hence, through the dual effects of targeting tumor cells and TME remodeling, Rg3-PTX-LPs achieved a high tumor inhibition rate of 90.3%.Our multifunctional Rg3-based liposome developed in the present study offered a promising strategy for rescuing the drug resistance tumor treatment.