The combined use of paclitaxel-loaded nanoparticles with a low-molecular-weight copolymer inhibitor of P-glycoprotein to overcome drug resistance

Two types of nanoparticles were prepared using the diblock copolymer methoxy poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(caprolactone) (MePEG-b-PCL), with either a short PCL block length, which forms micelles, or with a longer PCL block length, which forms kinetically “frozen core” structures termed nanospheres. Paclitaxel (PTX)-loaded micelles and nanospheres were evaluated for their cytotoxicity, cellular polymer uptake, and drug accumulation in drug-sensitive (Madin–Darby Canine Kidney [MDCK]II) and multidrug-resistant (MDR) P-glycoprotein (P-gp)-overexpressing (MDCKII-MDR1) cell lines. Both types of PTX-loaded nanoparticles were equally effective at inhibiting proliferation of MDCKII cells, but PTX-loaded micelles were more cytotoxic than nanospheres in MDCKII-MDR1 cells. The intracellular accumulation of both PTX and the diblock copolymers were similar for both nanoparticles, suggesting that the difference in cytotoxicity might be due to the different drug-release profiles. Furthermore, the cytotoxicity of these PTX-loaded nanoparticles was enhanced when these systems were subsequently or concurrently combined with a low-molecular-weight MePEG-b-PCL diblock copolymer, which we have previously demonstrated to be an effective P-gp inhibitor. These results suggest that the dual functionality of MePEG-b-PCL might be useful in delivering drug intracellularly and in modulating P-gp in order to optimize the cytotoxicity of PTX in multidrug-resistant cells.