Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has been listed as one of the most fatal diseases, and no effective targeting treatment is clinically available. Although CD44-targeting hyaluronic acid (HA) has been utilized as targeting ligands in many studies, no facile ways have been developed through HA self-assembly at the nanoparticle surface. Herein, we reported N-isopropylacrylamide-grafted chitosan-based nanoparticles self-assembling with HA (HA-NPs) through electrostatic forces and loaded with curcumin (CUR). The HA-NPs displayed pH-responsive properties due to the chemical modification of chitosan, and the preparation process was optimized by central composite design-response surface methodology. HA anchorage confers the vehicle with tumor-targeting capability. HA-NPs displayed more robust effects of inhibiting TNBC primary tumor growth than free CUR and a plain counterpart but without increased systemic cytotoxicity. In addition, in vivo pharmacokinetic studies showed that HA-NPs significantly increased the in vivo residence time of free CUR and improved the bioavailability of CUR. These findings suggested that chitosan-based HA-NPs may provide a feasible and unique strategy to achieve CD44 targeting and enhance its efficacy in vivo for the treatment of advanced TNBC.
Keywords: CD44 targeting; N-isopropylacrylamide-grafted chitosan; curcumin; hyaluronic acid; self-assembly.