@article{
author = "Ignjatović, Nenad L. and Penov-Gaši, Katarina and Wu, Victoria and Ajduković, Jovana and Kojić, Vesna V. and Vasiljević-Radović, Dana and Kuzmanović, Maja D. and Uskoković, Vuk and Uskoković, Dragan",
year = "2016",
abstract = "In an earlier study we demonstrated that hydroxyapatite nanoparticles coated with chitosan-poly(d,l)-lactide-co-glycolide (HAp/Ch-PLGA) target lungs following their intravenous injection into mice. In this study we utilize an emulsification process and freeze drying to load the composite HAp/Ch-PLGA particles with 17β-hydroxy-17α-picolyl-androst-5-en-3β-yl-acetate (A), a chemotherapeutic derivative of androstane and a novel compound with a selective anticancer activity against lung cancer cells. 1H NMR and 13C NMR techniques confirmed the intact structure of the derivative A following its entrapment within HAp/Ch-PLGA particles. The thermogravimetric and differential thermal analyses coupled with mass spectrometry were used to assess the thermal degradation products and properties of A-loaded HAp/Ch-PLGA. The loading efficiency, as indicated by the comparison of enthalpies of phase transitions in pure A and A-loaded HAp/Ch-PLGA, equaled 7.47wt.%. The release of A from HAp/Ch-PLGA was sustained, neither exhibiting a burst release nor plateauing after three weeks. Atomic force microscopy and particle size distribution analyses were used to confirm that the particles were spherical with a uniform size distribution of d50=168nm. In vitro cytotoxicity testing of A-loaded HAp/Ch-PLGA using MTT and trypan blue dye exclusion assays demonstrated that the particles were cytotoxic to the A549 human lung carcinoma cell line (46±2%), while simultaneously preserving high viability (83±3%) of regular MRC5 human lung fibroblasts and causing no harm to primary mouse lung fibroblasts. In conclusion, composite A-loaded HAp/Ch-PLGA particles could be seen as promising drug delivery platforms for selective cancer therapies, targeting malignant cells for destruction, while having a significantly lesser cytotoxic effect on the healthy cells.",
publisher = "Elsevier",
journal = "Colloids and Surfaces. B: Biointerfaces",
title = "Selective anticancer activity of hydroxyapatite/chitosan-poly(d,l)-lactide-co-glycolide particles loaded with an androstane-based cancer inhibitor",
volume = "148",
pages = "629-639",
doi = "10.1016/j.colsurfb.2016.09.041"
}