Tehran, Iran, May 9th, 2015

Mitoxantrone is a drug used in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS), prostate cancer and leukemia. However, unwanted and harmful side effects of this drug have limited its applications.

Liposomal nanocarrier has been made of cholesterol derivatives in this research and mitoxantrone drug has been loaded in it. Among the objectives of the research, mention can be made of increasing the selectivity of the nanocarrier, decreasing the side effects of the drug and increasing its stability in blood plasma.

Liposomes are known as appropriate and promising options for the treatment of cancer among various nanocarriers. However, there are some reports about the instability of these nanocarriers in blood plasma or their low sensitivity to pH changes inside the body or their low time of circulation in blood. Therefore, the aim of this research was to design nanoliposomes that are stable in blood plasma and have high sensitivity to pH changes.

Based on the obtained results, the produced nanoliposome is sensitive to pH changes and is stable in blood plasma. In addition, the toxicity effect of the product is higher on cancerous cells than on healthy ones. This fact results in a decrease in the side effects and the dosage of the drug.

Results showed that the liposomes produced in this research are four times more stable than the normal liposomes. In addition, the sensitivity of PC-3 and MCF-7 cancerous cells to this liposome is two times more than that of the healthy cells contrary to normal liposomes.