Redox- and MMP-2-sensitive drug delivery nanoparticles based on gelatin and albumin for tumor targeted delivery of paclitaxel

Tumor-responsive nanocarriers are highly valuable and demanded for smart anticancer drug delivery, where a quick release of chemotherapeutic drugs in tumors is preferred. Herein, a redox and MMP-2 sensitive nanoparticle has been designed for targeted delivery of PTX. Bovine serum albumin as a targeting ligand and gelatin as a hydrophilic carrier and MMP-2 sensitive reagent were used to construct the nanoparticles. Disulfide containing prodrug (PTX-SS-COOH) was grafted to the sulfhydryl modified gelatin to form the redox sensitive amphiphilic polymer. The nanoparticles were formed by self-assembly of amphiphilic polymer and BSA covering. Furthermore the modified sulfhydryl group on the gelatin can form a disulfide bond by self-crosslinking in the air, which endows the nanoparticle with a stable structure. The nanoparticle was sensitive to changes in MMP-2 concentration and redox potential, resulting in multiple responsive drug delivery to the tumor microenvironment. We further verified the anticancer effect of the nanoparticles both in vitro and in vivo, the nanoparticle (BSA/Gel-SS-PTX/PTX-SS-COOH NPs) demonstrated an excellent anticancer efficiency.