| 초록 |
Piperlongumine (PL) has attracted attention for promising pro-oxidant anticancer agent that can induce increase in intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). PL exhibits cancer-specific cytotoxicity via enhancement of intracellular ROS concentration in cancer cells, However, its poor solubility in aqueous solution is a critical drawback to compromise its therapeutic efficacy. To overcome this, we developed low-toxic ROS-responsive thioether-bearing polymer (TEP) to effectively deliver PL to cancer cells. TEP bears ROS-sensitive sulfide and ester groups. TEP successfully formed nanoparticles encapsulating PL (PL-TEP NPs). Importantly, PL-TEP NPs revealed superior cytotoxicity in human breast cancer cells (MCF-7) over normal human dermal fibroblast cells (hDFB). This study demonstrates that TEP-based nanoparticles are effective and low-toxic ROS-responsive drug carriers for hydrophobic PL, and PL-TEP NPs have high potential for cancer-specific pro-oxidant therapy. |
