Novel delivery of sorafenib by natural killer cell-derived exosomes-enhanced apoptosis in triple-negative breast cancer

We investigated the delivery of sorafenib (SFB) to breast cancer spheroids by natural killer cell-derived exosomes (NK-Exos). SFB-NK-Exos were constructed by electroporation. Their antitumor effects were evaluated by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium, acridine orange/ethidium bromide, 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole, annexin/propidium iodide, scratch and migration assay, colony formation, RT-PCR, western blot and lipophagy tests. The loading efficacy was 46.66%. SFB-NK-Exos-treated spheroids showed higher cytotoxic effects (33%) and apoptotic population (44.9%). Despite the reduction of SFB concentration in the SFB-NK-Exos formulation, similar cytotoxic effects to those of free SFB were observed. Increased intracellular trafficking, sustained release of the drug and selective inhibitory effects demonstrated efficient navigation. This is the first report for SFB loading into NK-Exos, which led to significant cytotoxic intensification against cancer cells.