Grapefruit-Derived Nanovectors Use an Activated Leukocyte Trafficking Pathway to Deliver Therapeutic Agents to Inflammatory Tumor Sites

Inflammation is a hallmark of cancer. Activated immune cells are intrinsically capable of homing to inflammatory sites. Using three inflammatory-driven disease mouse models, we show that grapefruit-derived nanovectors (GNV) coated with inflammatory-related receptor enriched membranes of activated leukocytes (IGNVs) are enhanced for homing to inflammatory tumor tissues. Blocking LFA-1 or CXCR1 and CXCR2 on the IGNVs significantly inhibits IGNV homing to the inflammatory tissue. The therapeutic potential of IGNVs was further demonstrated by enhancing the chemotherapeutic effect as shown by inhibition of tumor growth in two tumor models and inhibiting the inflammatory effects of dextran sulfate sodium-induced mouse colitis. The fact that IGNVs are capable of homing to inflammatory tissue and that chemokines are overexpressed in diseased human tissue provides the rationale for using IGNVs to more directly deliver therapeutic agents to inflammatory tumor sites and the rationale for the use of IGNVs as treatment for certain cancers in personalized medicine.