Doxorubicin and Lovastatin co-delivery liposomes for synergistic therapy of liver cancer

Abstract Doxorubicin is a commonly-used anticancer drug, which has disadvantages such as drug resistance and side effects. Combination therapy is considered to be an effective strategy to overcome these problems. According to the previous studies, Lovastatin could enhance the antitumor activity, reverse drug resistance and reduce associated toxicity of Doxorubicin. In this study, Doxorubicin-Lovastatin-liposomes were prepared successfully. The optimized composition of Doxorubicin-Lovastatin-liposomes were selected using Box-Behnken design. Doxorubicin-Lovastatin-liposomes were demonstrated to have uniform particle size, high encapsulation efficiency and great release behavior in vitro. Biodistribution studies proved that the liposomes displayed great tumor accumulation and targeting. Meanwhile, pharmacokinetic studies showed that Lovastatin could effectively improve the bioavailability of Doxorubicin and slow down the elimination rate in vivo. Furthermore, according to the results in vivo, Doxorubicin-Lovastatin-liposomes could efficiently inhibit the growth of tumor and reduce pathological damages to the main tissues comparing with the single drug group. In conclusion, Doxorubicin-Lovastatin-liposomes might be a promising method of treating liver cancer.