pH‐Responsive PEG‐Shedding and Targeting Peptide‐Modified Nanoparticles for Dual‐Delivery of Irinotecan and microRNA to Enhance Tumor‐Specific Therapy

Irinotecan is one of the main chemotherapeutic agents for colorectal cancer (CRC). MicroRNA-200 (miR-200) has been reported to inhibit metastasis in cancer cells. Herein, pH-sensitive and peptide-modified liposomes and solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) are designed for encapsulation of irinotecan and miR-200, respectively. These peptides include one cell-penetrating peptide, one ligand targeted to tumor neovasculature undergoing angiogenesis, and one mitochondria-targeting peptide. The peptide-modified nanoparticles are further coated with a pH-sensitive PEG-lipid derivative with an imine bond. These specially-designed nanoparticles exhibit pH-responsive release, internalization, and intracellular distribution in acidic pH of colon cancer HCT116 cells. These nanoparticles display low toxicity to blood and noncancerous intestinal cells. Delivery of miR-200 by SLN further increases the cytotoxicity of irinotecan-loaded liposomes against CRC cells by triggering apoptosis and suppressing RAS/β-catenin/ZEB/multiple drug resistance (MDR) pathways. Using CRC-bearing mice, the in vivo results further indicate that irinotecan and miR-200 in pH-responsive targeting nanoparticles exhibit positive therapeutic outcomes by inhibiting colorectal tumor growth and reducing systemic toxicity. Overall, successful delivery of miR and chemotherapy by multifunctional nanoparticles may modulate β-catenin/MDR/apoptosis/metastasis signaling pathways and induce programmed cancer cell death. Thus, these pH-responsive targeting nanoparticles may provide a potential regimen for effective treatment of colorectal cancer.