Delivery of Superparamagnetic Polymeric Micelles Loaded With Quercetin to Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells

Abstract

The aim of this study is to develop co-encapsulation of quercetin (QCT) and superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) into methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol)-b-oligo(ɛ-caprolactone), mPEG750-b-OCL-Bz micelles (QCT-SPION-loaded micelles) for inhibition of hepatitis B virus-transfected hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2.2.15) cell growth. QCT-SPION-loaded micelles were prepared using film hydration method. They were spherical in shape with an average size of 22-55 nm. The best QCT-SPION-loaded micelles showed entrapment efficiency and loading capacity of QCT at 70% and 3.5%, respectively, and of SPIONs at 15% and 0.8%, respectively. Transverse (T2) relaxivity of SPIONs was 137 mM−1s−1. SPION clusters present inside the core of QCT-SPION-loaded micelles increased T2 relaxivity value (246 mM−1s−1) indicating the good magnetic resonance imaging sensitivity of QCT-SPION-loaded micelles in comparison with SPIONs. QCT-SPION-loaded micelles could be taken up by HepG2.2.15 cells and showed higher cytotoxicity than QCT. Furthermore, these cells were arrested by QCT-SPION-loaded micelles at the G0/G1 phase of cell cycle. QCT-SPION-loaded micelles accumulated in the vicinity of Neodymium Iron Boron (NdFeB) magnetic disc, resulting in the potent inhibition of cancer cell growth at the strong magnetic field strength. In conclusion, mPEG750-b-OCL-Bz micelles are a promising multi-functional vehicle for co-delivery of QCT and SPIONs for disease monitoring and therapies of hepatocellular carcinoma.