BIODISTRIBUTION OF DOXORUBICIN-LOADED SUCCINOYL CHITOSAN NANOPARTICLES IN MICE INJECTED VIA INTRAVENOUS OR INTRANASAL ROUTES

Chitosan (Chi) is an extremely promising natural biopolymer with remarkable potency for the development of drug and vaccine delivery nanosystems. Various Chi derivatives are used to form nanoparticles (NPs) with unique properties. However, the efficacy of the therapy delivered by Chi NPs depends significantly on NP biodistribution in the body. The aim of this study was the analysis of biodistribution of NPs formed by succinoyl Chi and loaded with doxorubicin (SCNP-DOX). We compared the distribution of free DOX and SCNP-DOX after intravenous (i.v.) and intranasal (i.n.) delivery into tumour-bearing mice. Distribution of DOX and SCNP-DOX was comparable after i.v. injection while they differed significantly after i.n. instillation.