Synthesis, characterization, pharmacological and computational evaluation of hyaluronic acid modified chebulinic acid encapsulated chitosan nanocomposite for cancer therapy

The purpose of this study was to produce hyaluronic acid customized nanoparticles with chitosan for the delivery of chebulinic acid (CLA) to enhance its anticancer potential against breast cancer. A significant portion of CLA was encapsulated (89.72 ± 4.38 %) and loaded (43.15 ± 5.61 %) within hybrid nanoparticles. The colloidal hybrid nanoparticles demonstrated a polydispersity index (PDI) of about 0.379 ± 0.112, with zeta capacitance of 32.69 ± 5.12 (mV), and an average size of 115 ± 8 (nm). It was found that CLA-CT-HA-NPs had stronger anticancer effects on MCF-7 cells (IC50 = 8.18 ± 3.02 μM) than pure CLA (IC50 = 17.15 ± 5.11 μM). The initial cytotoxicity findings were supported by additional investigations based on comet assay and flow cytometry analysis. Tumor remission and survival were evaluated in five separate groups of mice. When juxtaposed with pure CLA (3.17 ± 0.419 %), CLA-CT-HA-NPs improved survival rates and reduced tumor burden by 3.76 ± 0.811(%). Furthermore, in-silico molecular docking investigations revealed that various biodegradable polymers had several levels of compatibility with CLA. The outcomes of this study might potentially served as an effective strategy for delivering drugs in the context of breast cancer therapy.