Chemotherapy of brain tumour using doxorubicin bound to surfactant-coated poly(butyl cyanoacrylate) nanoparticles: revisiting the role of surfactants.

Poly(butyl cyanoacrylate) nanoparticles coated with poloxamer 188 (Pluronic) F68) and also, as shown previously, polysorbate 80 (Tween 80) considerably enhance the anti-tumour effect of doxorubicin against an intracranial glioblastoma in rats. The investigation of plasma protein adsorption on the surface of the drug-loaded nanoparticles by two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-D PAGE) revealed that both surfactants, besides other plasma components, induced a considerable adsorption of apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I). It is hypothesized that delivery of doxorubicin to the brain by means of nanoparticles may be augmented by the interaction of apolipoprotein A-I that is anchored on the surface of the nanoparticles with the scavenger receptor class B type I (SR-BI) located at the blood-brain barrier. This is the first study that shows a correlation between the adsorption of apolipoprotein A-I on the nanoparticle surface and the delivery of the drug across the blood-brain barrier.