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Method Article
This protocol describes an efficient and convenient analytical process of sample extraction and simultaneous determination of multiple drugs, doxorubicin (DOX), mitomycin C (MMC) and a cardio-toxic DOX metabolite, doxorubicinol (DOXol), in the biological samples from a preclinical breast tumor model treated with nanoparticle formulations of synergistic drug combination.
Combination chemotherapy is frequently used in the clinic for cancer treatment; however, associated adverse effects to normal tissue may limit its therapeutic benefit. Nanoparticle-based drug combination has been shown to mitigate the problems encountered by free drug combination therapy. Our previous studies have shown that the combination of two anticancer drugs, doxorubicin (DOX) and mitomycin C (MMC), produced a synergistic effect against both murine and human breast cancer cells in vitro. DOX and MMC co-loaded polymer-lipid hybrid nanoparticles (DMPLN) bypassed various efflux transporter pumps that confer multidrug resistance and demonstrated enhanced efficacy in breast tumor models. Compared to conventional solution forms, such superior efficacy of DMPLN was attributed to the synchronized pharmacokinetics of DOX and MMC and increased intracellular drug bioavailability within tumor cells enabled by the nanocarrier PLN.
To evaluate the pharmacokinetics and bio-distribution of co-administered DOX and MMC in both free solution and nanoparticle forms, a simple and efficient multi-drug analysis method using reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was developed. In contrast to previously reported methods that analyzed DOX or MMC individually in the plasma, this new HPLC method is able to simultaneously quantitate DOX, MMC and a major cardio-toxic DOX metabolite, doxorubicinol (DOXol), in various biological matrices (e.g., whole blood, breast tumor, and heart). A dual fluorescent and ultraviolet absorbent probe 4-methylumbelliferone (4-MU) was used as an internal standard (I.S.) for one-step detection of multiple drug analysis with different detection wavelengths. This method was successfully applied to determine the concentrations of DOX and MMC delivered by both nanoparticle and solution approaches in whole blood and various tissues in an orthotopic breast tumor murine model. The analytical method presented is a useful tool for pre-clinical analysis of nanoparticle-based delivery of drug combinations.
Chemotherapy is a primary treatment modality for many cancers yet it is often associated with severe adverse effects and limited efficacy due to drug resistance and other factors1,2,3. To improve the outcome of chemotherapy, drug combination regimens have been applied in the clinic based on considerations such as non-overlapping toxicities, different mechanisms of drug action, and non-cross drug resistance4,5,6. In clinical trials, a better tumor response rate was often observed using simultaneously administered drug combinations compared to a regimen of sequential drug delivery7,8. However, due to sub-optimal bio-distribution of free drug forms, simultaneous injection of multiple drugs can cause prominent normal tissue toxicity that outweighs the therapeutic effect9,10,11. Nanocarrier-based drug delivery has been shown to alter the pharmacokinetics and bio-distribution of encapsulated drugs, enhancing tumor-targeted accumulation12,13,14. As reviewed in our recent articles, nanoparticles co-loaded with synergistic drug combinations have demonstrated the capability to mitigate the problems encountered by free drug combinations, due to their controlled temporal and spatial co-delivery of multiple drugs to tumor tissue, enabling synergistic drug effects against cancer cells4,15,16. As a result, superior therapeutic efficacy and low toxicity have been demonstrated in both pre-clinical and clinical studies4,17,18.
Our previous in vitro studies found that the combination of two anticancer drugs, doxorubicin (DOX) and mitomycin C (MMC), produced a synergistic effect against several breast cancer cells lines and, furthermore, co-loading DOX and MMC within polymer-lipid hybrid nanoparticles (DMPLN) overcame various multi-drug resistant associated efflux pumps (e.g., P-glycoprotein and breast cancer resistant protein)19,20,21. In vivo, DMPLN enabled spatial-temporal co-delivery of DOX and MMC to tumor sites and increased bioavailability of drugs within cancer cells, as indicated by moderation of the formation of the DOX metabolite doxorubicinol (DOXol)22. As a result, the DMPLN enhanced tumor cell apoptosis, tumor growth inhibition, and prolonged host survival compared to free DOX and MMC combination or a liposomal DOX formulation22,23,24,25.
Analyzing the actual amount of drugs co-delivered by a nanocarrier is critical for designing effective nanoparticle formulations. Many methods have been developed to analyze the plasma level of single DOX or MMC doses using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) alone or in combination with mass spectrometry (MS)26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34. However, these methods are often time-consuming and impractical for combination therapy as a large number of biological samples need to be prepared separately for analysis of multiple drugs (sometimes including drug metabolites). In addition to the strong plasma protein binding of DOX and MMC, red blood cells also have a great capacity to bind and concentrate many anticancer drugs35,36. Thus, plasma analysis for DOX or MMC may obfuscate actual blood drug concentrations. The present work (Figure 1) describes a simple and robust multiple drug analysis method using reverse phase HPLC to simultaneously extract and quantitate DOX, MMC and the DOX metabolite doxorubicinol (DOXol) from whole blood and various tissues (e.g., tumors). It has been successfully applied to determine the pharmacokinetics and bio-distribution of DOX and MMC as well as the formation of DOXol after drug delivery via free solutions or nanoparticle forms (i.e., DMPLN and liposomal DOX) in an orthotopically implanted murine breast-tumor mouse model after intravenous (i.v.) injection22.
All animal experiments were approved by the Animal Care Committee of University Health Network at the Ontario Cancer Institute and conducted in accordance with the Canadian Council on Animal Care Guidelines.
1. Biological Sample Preparation
2. HPLC Instrumentation and Operation Parameters
3. HPLC Validation
Two anticancer drugs, DOX and MMC, as well as the DOX metabolite, DOXol, were simultaneously detected without any biological interference under the same applied gradient HPLC condition using 4-MU as the I.S. for both the fluorescence and UV detectors. DOX, MMC, DOXol and 4-MU were well-separated from each other with retention times of 5.7 min for MMC, 10.4 min for DOXol, 10.9 min for 4-MU, and 11.1 min for DOX (Figure 2). Each drug in whole blood and various ...
Compared to other chromatographic methods that enable the detection of a single drug species at a time, the present HPLC protocol is able to simultaneously quantitate three drug compounds (DOX, MMC, and DOXol) in the same biological matrix without the need to change the mobile phase. This preparation and analysis method has been successfully applied to determine the pharmacokinetics and bio-distribution of two nanoparticle-based drug delivery systems (i.e., liposomal DOX and DMPLN)22. Sin...
The authors have no competing financial interests and conflicts of interest.
The authors gratefully acknowledge the equipment grant from the Natural Science and Engineering Research (NSERC) Council of Canada for HPLC, the operating grant from the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) and Canadian Breast Cancer Research (CBCR) Alliance to X.Y. Wu, and the University of Toronto Scholarship to R.X. Zhang and T. Zhang.
Name | Company | Catalog Number | Comments |
Doxorubicin | Polymed Theraeutics | 111023 | Anticancer drug |
Mitomycin C | Polymed Theraeutics | 060814 | Anticancer drug |
Doxorubicinol (DOXol) | Toronto Research Chemicals | D558020 | Metabolite of DOX |
4-Methylumbelliferone sodium salt | Sigma-Aldrich | M1508 | Internal standard |
Myristic Acid | Sigma-Aldrich | 544-63-8 | Materials for poly-lipid hybrid nanoparticles |
Polyoxyethylene (100) Stearate | Spectrum | M1402 | Materials for poly-lipid hybrid nanoparticles |
Polyoxyethylene (40) Stearate | Sigma-Aldrich | P3440 | Materials for poly-lipid hybrid nanoparticles |
Pluronic F68 (PF68) | BASF Corp. | 9003-11-6 | Materials for poly-lipid hybrid nanoparticles |
Ultrasonication (UP100H) | Hielscher, Ultrasound Technology | NA | Nanoparticle preparation |
Water Bath (ISOTEMP 3016HS) | Fisher Scientific | NA | Nanoparticle preparation |
Liposomal Doxorubicin (Caelyx) | Janssen | Purchased from the pharmacy Princess Margaret Hospital | Clinically-approved nanoparticle formulation |
HPLC-graded Methanol | Caledon Chemicals | 6701-7-40 | HPLC mobile phase composition |
HPLC-graded H2O | Caledon Chemicals | 8801-7-40 | HPLC mobile phase composition |
HPLC-graded Acetonitrile | Caledon Chemicals | 1401-7-40 | HPLC mobile phase composition |
Trifluoroacetic Acid | Sigma-Aldrich | 302031 | HPLC mobile phase composition |
0.45 μm Nylon Membrane Filter Paper | Whatman | WHA7404004 | HPLC mobile phase preparation |
1cc Plastic Syringes | Becton, Dickinson and Company | 2606-309659 | Treatment injection |
5cc Plastic Syringes | Becton, Dickinson and Company | 2608-309646 | Tissue collections |
30G 1/2 Needles | Becton, Dickinson and Company | 305106 | Treatment injection |
25G 5/8 Needles | Becton, Dickinson and Company | 305122 | Tissue collections |
Sterile 0.9% Saline | Univeristy of Toronto House Brand | 1011 | Tissue perfusion |
13 ml Rounded-bottom conical tube | SARSTEDT | 62.515.006 | Prolyprolene, tissue homogenization |
Alpha Minimum Essential Medium (MEM) | Gibco | 12571063 | Cell medium |
1 x Phosphate Buffer Saline | Gibco | 10010023 | Tissue homogenization |
Triton X-100 | Sigma-Aldrich | X100-100 ML | Tissue homogenization |
Formic acid | Caledon Chemicals | 1/5/3840 | Adjust pH for extraction solvent |
Sodium heparin sprayed plastic tubes | Becton, Dickinson and Company | 367878 | Blood collection |
Analytical Weigh Balance | Sartorius | CPA225D | NA |
pH meters | Fisher Scientific | 13-637-671 | accumet BASIC |
Vortex Mixter | Fisher Scientific | 02-215-365 | Vortexing samples at desired speed |
1.5 ml Microcentrifuge Tube | Fisherbrand | 2043-05408129 | Prolyprolene |
Model 1000 homogenizer | Fisher Scientific | 08-451-672 | Tissue homogenization |
Centrifuge 5702R | Eppendorf | 5702R | Extraction preparation |
Heated Evaporator System | Glas-Col | NA | Sample reconstitution |
HPLC Screw Thread Vials | DIKMA | 5320 | HPLC sample injection |
HPLC Screw Caps with PTFE White Silicone Septa | DIKMA | 5325 | HPLC sample injection |
HPLC Polypropylene Insert | Agilent Technologies | 5182-0549 | Maximum volume 250 μl, HPLC sample injection |
Xbridge C18 Column | Waters Corporation | 186003117 | Drug analysis |
Gradient pump | Waters Corporation | W600 | Drug analysis |
Auto-sampler | Waters Corporation | W2707 | Drug analysis |
Photodiode array detector | Waters Corporation | W2998 | Drug analysis |
Multi λ fluoresence detector | Waters Corporation | W2475 | Drug analysis |
EMPOWER 2 | Waters Corporation | NA | Data analysis software |
Scientist | Micromath | NA | Pharmacokinetic analysis |
Female Balb/c Mice | Jackson Laboratory | 001026 | In vivo |
EMT6/WT Breast Cancer Cells | Provided by Dr. Ian Tannock; Ontario Cancer Institute | NA | In vivo |
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