Salinomycin-loaded Nanofibers for Glioblastoma Therapy

Salinomycin is an antibiotic that has recently been introduced as a novel and effective anti-cancer drug. In this study, PLGA nanofibers (NFs) containing salinomycin (Sali) were fabricated by electrospinning for the first time. The biodegradable PLGA NFs had stability for approximately 30 days and exhibited a sustained release of the drug for at least a 2-week period. Cytotoxicity of the NFs + Sali was evaluated on human glioblastoma U-251 cells and more than 50% of the treated cells showed apoptosis in 48 h. Moreover, NFs + Sali was effective to induce intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) leading to cell apoptosis. Gene expression studies also revealed the capability of the NFs + Sali to upregulate tumor suppressor Rbl1 and Rbl2 as well as Caspase 3 while decreasing Wnt signaling pathway. In general, the results indicated anti-tumor activity of the Sali-loaded NFs suggesting their potential applications as implantable drug delivery systems in the brain upon surgical resection of the tumor.