Therapeutic potential of boron-based nanoparticles for enhanced glioblastoma treatment

Abstract

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common type of brain tumor and its treatment is difficult due to its infiltrative nature into normal brain tissue, heterogeneity, and presence of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which restricts the penetration of chemotherapy drugs into the brain tissue and also the tumor site. Nanoparticles have emerged as a potential solution to improve the stability and delivery of the therapeutic agents directly to the tumor site. In this paper, we developed boron-based nanocarrier systems for providing the anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX) to T98G human glioblastoma cells. Three types of nanoparticles, calcium tetraborate (CBO), magnesium tetraborate (MBO), and strontium tetraborate (SBO) were prepared with sizes ranging approximately from 200 to 350 nm. DOX was effectively incorporated into the nanoparticles with ∼95 % loading capacity. As a result of cytotoxicity studies, the IC50 of free DOX was determined as ∼25 μg/mL (0.046 mM) for the glioblastoma cells. In contrast to blank borate nanoparticles, which had no harmful effect on the cells except SBO at high concentrations, DOX-containing borate nanoparticles increased toxicity in a way that was dependent on both time and concentration. Also, the nanoparticles were successively taken by the glioblastoma cells and therefore exhibited more cytotoxic effect than free DOX. As a result, these DOX-loaded boron-based nanoparticles are promising carrier systems for further research in glioblastoma treatment such as combined therapy with boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT).