Effective and targeted human orthotopic Glioblastoma xenograft therapy via a multifunctional biomimetic nanomedicine

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a fatal central nervous system tumor without effective treatment. Chemotherapeutic agents are mainstays in the treatment of glioblastoma. However, the effectiveness of these is seriously hindered by poor blood–brain-barrier (BBB) penetrance and tumor targeting, together with short biological half-life. Improved chemotherapy is thus urgently needed for GBM. Multifunctional nanoparticle delivery systems offer much promise in overcoming current limitations. Accordingly, a multifunctional biomimetic nanomedicine is developed by functionalizing the surface of red blood cell membranes (RBCms) with angiopep-2 and loading pH-sensitive nanoparticles (polymer, doxorubicin (Dox), and lexiscan (Lex)) using the functionalized cell membrane to generate the novel nanomedicine, Ang-RBCm@NM-(Dox/Lex). The studies toward orthotopic U87MG human glioblastoma tumor-bearing nude mice show that the Ang-RBCm@NM-(Dox/Lex) nanomedicine has much improved blood circulation time, superb BBB penetration, superior tumor accumulation and retention. Moreover, effective suppression of tumor growth and significantly improved medium survival time are also observed after Ang-RBCm@NM-(Dox/Lex) treatment. The results show that this biomimetic nanoplatform can serve as a flexible and powerful system for GBM treatment which can be readily adapted for the treatment of other central nervous system (CNS) disorders.