Dually Active Apigenin-Loaded Nanostructured Lipid Carriers for Cancer Treatment

Abstract

Purpose: Cancer is one of the major causes of death worldwide affecting more than 19 million people. Traditional cancer therapies have many adverse effects and often result in unsatisfactory outcomes. Natural flavones, such as apigenin (APG), have demonstrated excellent antitumoral properties. However, they have a low aqueous solubility. To overcome this drawback, APG can be encapsulated in nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC). Therefore, we developed dual NLC encapsulating APG (APG-NLC) with a lipid matrix containing rosehip oil, which is known for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Methods: Optimisation, physicochemical characterisation, biopharmaceutical behaviour, and therapeutic efficacy of this novel nanostructured system were assessed. Results: APG-NLC were optimized obtaining an average particle size below 200 nm, a surface charge of −20 mV, and an encapsulation efficiency over 99%. The APG-NLC released APG in a sustained manner, and the results showed that the formulation was stable for more than 10 months. In vitro studies showed that APG-NLC possess significant antiangiogenic activity in ovo and selective antiproliferative activity in several cancer cell lines without exhibiting toxicity in healthy cells. Conclusion: APG-NLC containing rosehip oil were optimised. They exhibit suitable physicochemical parameters, storage stability for more than 10 months, and prolonged APG release. Moreover, APG-NLC were internalised inside tumour cells, showing the capacity to cause cytotoxicity in cancer cells without damaging healthy cells.