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Abstract
Platinum-based anticancer agents have been in widespread use for many years to successfully treat many different types of cancer. However, the efficacy of these drugs is limited by serious side effects. One of the strategies to reduce the side effects is encapsulation of the drug in a lipid formulation. Recently, a novel method for the efficient encapsulation of cisplatin in a lipid formulation was discovered. The method is unique in that it does not generate conventional liposomes but nanocapsules: small aggregates of solid cisplatin covered by a lipid bilayer. Carboplatin, a cisplatin-derived anticancer drug with different chemical properties, was also efficiently encapsulated by a similar method. The encapsulation in nanocapsules dramatically improves the in vitro cytotoxicity of the platinum drugs. The nanocapsule technology may be generally applicable in encapsulating platinum drugs with limited water solubility and low lipophilicity, and thereby improve the therapeutic index and profile of these drugs.