We studied the effect of IL-1β on the permeability of brain capillaries in healthy mice. Intravital microscopy demonstrated that parenteral administration of IL-1β was followed by an increase in vascular permeability ensuring passage of free Alexa488 fluorescent label through the capillary walls, but not sufficient for penetration of liposomes. In addition, experiments on mice with intracranial M6 glioma showed penetration of liposomes through the walls of tumor capillaries after parenteral administration of IL-1β in a concentration of 2 μg/ml. Thus, the use of proinflammatory cytokine IL-1β in the therapy of brain tumors can significantly increase the therapeutic efficacy of drug delivery systems, in particular, for drugs poorly crossing the blood-brain barrier.
Keywords: IL-1β; blood—brain barrier; brain tumors; liposomes; targeted drug delivery.