Comparison of poly(ε-caprolactone) chain lengths of poly(ε-caprolactone)-co-d-α-tocopheryl-poly(ethylene glycol) 1000 succinate nanoparticles for enhancement of quercetin delivery to SKBR3 breast cancer cells.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of the different hydrophobic chain lengths of poly(ε-caprolactone)-co-d-α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate (P(CL)-TPGS) copolymers on the nanoparticle properties and delivery efficiency of quercetin to SKBR3 breast cancer cells. The 5:1, 10:1 and 20:1 P(CL)-TPGS copolymers were fabricated and found to be composed of 25.0%, 45.2% and 66.8% of hydrophobic P(CL) chains with respect to the polymer chain, respectively. The DSC measurement indicated the microphase separation of P(CL) and TPGS segments. The crystallization of P(CL) segment occurred when the P(CL) chain was higher than 25% due to the restricted mobility of P(CL) by TPGS. The longer P(CL) chain had the higher crystallinity while decreasing the crystallinity of TPGS segment. The increasing P(CL) chain length increased the particle size of P(CL)-TPGS nanoparticles from 20 to 205 nm and enhanced the loading capacity of quercetin due to the more hydrophobicity of the nanoparticle core. The release of quercetin was retarded by an increase in P(CL) chain length associated with the increasing hydrophobicity and crystallinity of P(CL)-TPGS copolymers. The P(CL)-TPGS nanoparticles potentiated the toxicity of quercetin to SKBR3 cells by at least 2.9 times compared to the quercetin solution. The cellular uptake of P(CL)-TPGS nanoparticles by SKBR3 cells occurred through cholesterol-dependent endocytosis. The 10:1 P(CL)-TPGS nanoparticles showed the highest toxicity and uptake efficiency and could be potentially used for the delivery of quercetin to breast cancer cells.