The Anticancer, Anti-metastatic, Anti-oxidant, and Anti-angiogenic Activity of Chitosan-coated Parthenolide/Bovine Serum Albumin Nanoparticles

The parthenolide (PLT), a feverfew plant anticancer bioactive compound was coupled with bovine serum albumin (BSA) and coated with chitosan polymers as an appropriate biocompatible drug delivery system to evaluate its anticancer potentials on human HT-29 cancer cell line. The PLT/BSA-chitosan nanoparticles (PBC-NP) were synthesized utilizing a long-term stirring-based assembling technique. The PBC-NPs were characterized by DLS, FTIR, zeta potential, and FESEM analysis. Moreover, the PBC-NP's cytotoxicity, anti-angiogenic, and anti-metastatic impacts were studied on the HT-29 cell line. Also, Chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) and scratch assays were applied to verify the anti-angiogenic and anti-metastatic potential of PBC-NP. Finally, the anti-oxidant activity of PBC-NP was measured by performing ABTS and DPPH assays. The PBC-NP (94.1 nm) decreased the HT-29 cells'survival and down-regulated VEGF/VEGF-R and MMP-9/MMP-2 gene expression, which significantly indicated their anti-angiogenic and anti-metastatic activity, respectively. Moreover, their anti-angiogenic activity was verified by detecting a significant decrease in the count and length of CAM blood vessels. Also, the decreased migration rate of HT-29 cells over the scratched line approves the PBC-NP's anti-metastatic activity. Finally, the decreased absorbance of free ABTS and DPPH radicals following the increased PBC-NP treatment doses indicated its radical scavenging potential. The PBC-NP was successfully produced as a safe natural antioxidant and biocompatible parthenolide drug delivery system, which notably induced cellular death and decreased angiogenesis and metastasis in human colon cancer cells. Moreover, the BSA- parthenolide interaction can improve the PBC-NP efficiency by providing an intra-particle second delivery system, which will be activated upon degrading the chitosan coating shield of nanoparticles. Therefore, the PBC-NP has the potential to open a novel promising horizon in efficiently treating human colon cancer.