Cationic Adiposomes as a Delivery System for Neogambogic Acid for the Treatment of Multiple Cancers

Abstract Neogambogic acid (NGA) is a potent antitumor drug but faces significant obstacles to clinical application, including extremely poor water solubility and systemic toxicity. To overcome these obstacles, a newly developed nanoparticle, adiposome, that consists of a neutral lipid core wrapped with a phospholipid‐monolayer membrane, is utilized for the delivery of NGA. In this study, NGA‐loaded cationic adiposomes (NGA‐C‐ADs) are constructed in which NGA is encapsulated within the neutral lipid core and surrounded by phospholipids and a cationic lipid. The concentration of NGA in NGA‐C‐ADs achieved is as high as 1.0 mg mL −1 , which is 2 000‐fold higher than in aqueous buffer alone. Moreover, in vitro cell tests revealed that NGA‐C‐ADs exhibited higher cytotoxicity against various cancer cell lines compared to free NGA. In addition, in vivo anti‐tumor animal studies demonstrate that NGA‐C‐ADs effectively inhibit tumor growth in subcutaneous CT26 tumor‐bearing mice and also suppress chemically‐induced hepatocellular carcinoma without obvious toxicity to major organs. These findings suggest that NGA‐C‐ADs hold promise as a potential treatment for multiple cancers.