Amphotericin B (AmB) is a poorly water soluble antibiotic and is used to treat fungal infections of the central nervous system (CNS). However, AmB shows poor penetration into the CNS. Angiopep-2, the ligand of low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein (LRP) present on the BBB, exhibits higher transcytosis capacity and parenchymal accumulation, which allowed us to consider the selectivity of it for receptor-mediated drug targeting to the brain. With this in mind, we prepared angiopep-2 modified PE-PEG based micellar drug delivery system loaded with the antifungal drug AmB to evaluate the efficiency of AmB accumulating into the brain. PE-PEG based micelles as nano-scaled drug carriers were investigated by incorporating AmB with high drug entrapping efficiency, improving solubilization of AmB and reducing its toxicity to mammalian cells. The AmB-incorporated angiopep-2 modified micelles showed highest efficiency in penetrating across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) than unmodified micelles and Fungizone (deoxycholate amphotericin B) in vitro and in vivo. Meanwhile, contrary to the free Rho 123, the enhancement of Rho 123-incorporated angiopep-2 modified micelles across the BBB can be explained by angiopep-2 modified polymeric micelles that have a potential to overcome the activity of efflux proteins expressed on the BBB such as P-glycoprotein. In conclusion, angiopep-2 modified polymeric micelles could be developed as a novel drug delivery system for brain targeting.
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