When it comes to long-acting injections, lyotropic liquid crystals (LLCs) are considered as an effective and powerful drug delivery technology due to their low manufacturing and injection difficulty, consistent releasing behaviors with low burst, as well as broadly applicable drug loading capacity. However, monoolein and phytantriol, as two widely used LLC-forming materials, may give rise to tissue cytotoxicity and undesired immunological responses, which may hinder the wide application of this technology. In this study, we opted for two ingredients, phosphatidylcholine and α-tocopherol, as carriers on account of their nature-obtainable and biocompatible qualities. By changing the ratios between them, we conducted research on crystalline types, nanosized structures, viscoelastic differences, characteristics of releasing behaviors, and in vivo safety. To fully exploit this in situ LLC platform with both injectability and sprayability, we focused on the treatment of both hormone-sensitive (HSPC) and castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). For HSPC, we found that spraying leuprolide and a cabazitaxel-loaded LLC platform on the tumor bed after resection greatly reduced tumor metastatic rate and prolonged the survival time. Besides, for CRPC, our results demonstrated that although leuprolide (a kind of drug for castration) alone could hardly limit the progression of CRPC with low MHC-I expression, its combination with cabazitaxel in our LLC platform achieved a significantly better tumor-inhibiting and anti-recurrent efficacy than single cabazitaxel-loaded LLC platform, owing to enhanced CD4+ T cell infiltration in tumors and immune-potentiating cytokines. In conclusion, our dual-functional and clinically achievable strategy might provide a treating solution toward both HSPC and CRPC.
Keywords: castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC); hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (HSPC); injectability and sprayability; lyotropic liquid crystalline platform; phosphatidylcholine; α-tocopherol.