(M1430-01-01) Nanocapsules for Combined Delivery of Docetaxel and Laguncularia Racemosa Extract Against Oral Cancer Cells In Vitro

Purpose: Herein, we designed a nanocapsule (NCs) for the co-delivery of docetaxel and L. racemosa leaf extract against oral cancer in vitro.

Methods: The leaves of L. racemosa were extracted using ethanol, and the percentage yield was calculated. Nanocapsules were formulated using the nano-precipitation method and physiochemically characterized. The anticancer efficacy of the prepared NCs (Blank NCs; CNC; PNC; and DNC), and the bare anticancer agents (DTX; Plant; and D & L) were evaluated using MTT assay, and the Fractional Inhibitory Concentration (FIC) was calculated, to ascertain the synergistic effects of the prepared NCs. The hemolytic activities of the prepared NCs was also evaluated, to determine their possible safety in the blood.

Results: The extraction of L. racemosa leaf yielded 15.49%. The particle sizes of the prepared NCs ranged from 118.8 ± 1.86 to 357.0 ± 5.17 nm; PDI values from 0.352 ± 0.01 to 0.095 ± 0.05; ζ values from +2.04 ± 0.53 to +3.86 ± 0.61 mV, with good % Encapsulation Efficiency of DTX (~97%), and controlled DTX release. Growth inhibition on HKESC-1-FL using MTT assay was observed for the blank NCs, and the prepared NCs (CNC, DNC, and PNC) showed improved anticancer efficacy compared to the bare anticancer agents (DTX, plant, D & L). FIC revealed a synergistic and additive effect of the prepared NCs with both DTX and the plant leaf extract. NCs were also observed to be non-hemolytic.

Conclusion: The prepared NCs could serve as a potential delivery system for the combinational therapy of oral cancer using DTX and L. racemosa as the anticancer agents.

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Acknowledgements: The authors wish to acknowledge the faculty of Health Sciences of the University of the Free State (UFS) and the Central University of Technology (CUT) for the funding of this work.