Abstract
Introduction
Atherosclerosis (ATH), the build up of fat in the arteries, is a principal cause of heart attack and stroke. Drug instability and lack of target specificity are major drawbacks of current clinical therapeutics. These undesirable effects can be eliminated by site-specific drug delivery. The endothelial surface over ATH lesions has been shown to overexpress vascular cell adhesion molecule1 (VCAM1), which can be used for targeted therapy.
Methods
Here, we report the synthesis, characterization, and development of anti VCAM1-functionalized liposomes to target cells overexpressing VCAM1 under static and flow conditions. Liposomes were composed of dioleoyl-phosphatidylcholine, sphingomyelin, cholesterol, and distearoyl-phosphatidylethanolamine-polyethylene glycol-cyanur (31.67:31.67:31.67:5 mol%). VCAM1 expression in endothelial cells was induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment.
Results
Characterization study revealed that liposomes were negatively charged (− 7.7 ± 2.6 mV) with an average diameter of 201.3 ± 3.3 nm. Liposomes showed no toxicity toward THP-1 derived macrophages and endothelial cells. Liposomes were able to target both fixed and non-fixed endothelial cells, in vitro, with significantly higher localization observed in non-fixed conditions. To mimic biological and physiologically-relevant conditions, liposome targeting was also examined under flow (4 dyn/cm2) with or without erythrocytes (40% v/v hematocrit). Liposomes were able to target LPS-treated endothelial cells under dynamic culture, in the presence or absence of erythrocytes, although targeting efficiency was five-fold lower in flow compared to static conditions.
Conclusions
This liposomal delivery system showed a significant improvement in localization on dysfunctional endothelium after surface functionalization. We conclude that VCAM1-functionalized liposomes can target and potentially deliver therapeutic compounds to ATH regions.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by National Institutes of Health and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI-R15HL133885) awarded to R.M. and A.F. We acknowledge the use of the Ohio University Heritage College Microscopy Core. The authors would like to thank Nicholas Cellars (Ohio University, Biomedical Engineering Program) and Nathan Reynolds (Ohio University, Translational Biomedical Science Program) for technical assistance.
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Authors Mahsa Kheradmandi, Ian Ackers, Monica M. Burdick, Ramiro Malgor, and Amir M. Farnoud declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
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Kheradmandi, M., Ackers, I., Burdick, M.M. et al. Targeting Dysfunctional Vascular Endothelial Cells Using Immunoliposomes Under Flow Conditions. Cel. Mol. Bioeng. 13, 189–199 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12195-020-00616-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12195-020-00616-1