Developing a novel P-glycoprotein inhibitor and pairing it with oral paclitaxel liposomes for enhanced cancer therapy

The mucus layer and intestine epithelium pose challenges to the bioavailability of orally administered paclitaxel (PTX). A novel P-glycoprotein inhibitor, (S)-2-decanoylamino-3-(1-naphthyl)propionyl-leucyl-valine (PgpI), was synthesized in this study. Its structure was characterized using ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, ESI-MS and IR spectroscopies. The efficacy and in vivo toxicity of PgpI were comprehensively evaluated by R8-PEG@PLs&PgpI, i.e., the oral combination of PgpI and octaarginine R8-PEG-DSPE modified PTX liposomes (R8-PEG@PLs), for lung cancer treatment. The joint forms between PgpI and R8-PEG@PLs were investigated and the affinity of PgpI for intestinal P-glycoprotein remained unaffected when combined externally with R8-PEG@PLs (R8-PEG@PLs&PgpI), compared to the diminished affinity for internal combination. The primary endocytic pathway for R8-PEG@PLs&PgpI in Caco-2 cells was the lipid raft, with increased percentage of macropinocytosis compared to unmodified PTX liposomes (PLs). The established physiology-based cellular kinetic models revealed that the net internalization rate of PTX was 2.3 times higher in R8-PEG@PLs&PgpI than in PLs, correlating with in vivo 2.2 times of antitumor rate. R8-PEG@PLs&PgpI may address the deficits of PLs in human lung A549 tumor-bearing mice due to the lower drug concentration than in normal mice. The external combination of R8-PEG@PLs&PgpI, offering maximal efficacy and security of PgpI, is promising for oral PTX delivery.