Construction of Fluorescein Isothiocyanate-Labeled MSNs/PEG/Lycorine/Antibody as Drug Carrier for Targeting Prostate Cancer Cells.

Lycorine possesses various pharmacological effects, including anti-tumor, antiviral, anti-malarial and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as a potential therapeutic against prostate cancer cells. Therefore, a drug carrier of lycorine with good biocompatibility, high drug loading capacity and good release ability is required to develop to gain maximum benefit from lycorine to target cancer cells. In this study, MSNs labeled with FITC and PEG were synthesized. These FITC-labeled MSNs/PEG/Lycorine/Antibody were loaded with lycorine and anti-EpCAM antibody, and analyzed for endocytosis, biocompatibility, drug loading and release ability. Furthermore, the effects of FITC-labeled MSNs/PEG/Lycorine/Antibody on PC-3M cell line were also investigated. The results revealed that the FITC-labeled MSNs/PEG/Lycorine/Antibody contained excellent biocompatibility, as well as efficiently penetrated into cancer cells. Moreover, the FITC-labeled MSNs/PEG/Lycorine/Antibody nano-composites exhibited excellent drug release ability and induced PC-3M cell death more quickly, as compared to the free lycorine, even at relatively lower concentrations. In conclusion, the FITC-labeled MSNs/PEG/Lycorine/Antibody developed in this study could be used as promising candidates of drug carriers of lycorine for cancer chemotherapy with maximization of anticancer efficacy and reduction of the undesirable side effects to normal cells.