Aqueous-core PEG-coated PLA nanocapsules for an efficient entrapment of water soluble anticancer drugs and a smart therapeutic response.

Novel PEGylated PLA nanocapsules (PEG-AcPLA nanocapsules), loading high percentage of water soluble drugs have been formulated by using multiple emulsion technique without using conventional stabilizers. In particular, sodium deoxycholate hydrate has been used to obtain nanocapsules having a mean diameter of about 200 nm and a polydispersity index of similar to 0.1. Gemcitabine hydrochloride (GEM) was used as a model of hydrophilic drug. GEM-loaded PEG-AcPIA nanocapsules demonstrated a high encapsulation efficacy and the drug-release followed a zero-order kinetic. MIT-assay evidenced an increased antitumor effect of GEM-loaded PEG-AcPIA nanocapsules compared to the free drug on different cancer cell lines and confocal laser scanning microscopy showed a significant improvement of cell interaction at 6 h of incubation. In vivo anticancer activity of GEM-loaded PEG-AcPLA nanocapsules using two xenograft murine models of human solid tumors further supported the efficacy of this nano-drug, thus providing preliminary results about the potential clinical application of this innovative nanotherapeutic.