Evaluation of the Biodistribution of Arginine, glycine, aspartic acid peptide-modified Nanoliposomes Containing Curcumin in Rats

Liposomes, as a biological membrane, is successfully used for drug delivery, reduces toxicity in normal cells and improves bio-accessibility of the drug to the target cells. Curcumin, as a bioactive substance with pleiotropic biological activities, is an anti-inflammatory compound and has several anticancer effects in different cancers such as pancreatic and breast cancer.  This study was conducted to determine the bio-distribution of arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD)-modified nanoliposomes containing curcumin in different tissues of rats.  The amount of curcumin in each tissue was examined by HPLC analysis. The distribution of liposomal Hoechst in the rats was evaluated by using fluorescence spectrophotometry, live animal imaging analyses and histological methods.  HPLC analysis showed the mean of curcumin in the blood significantly increased in the liposomal curcumin modified with RGD compared to free curcumin. These results were confirmed by fluorescence measurement for RGD modified liposome containing Hoechst dye. There was negligible fluorescent intensity in the blood rats, which received Hoechst alone. Live animal imaging analysis showed the presence of fluorescent color in heart tissue for all groups. It was also detected in kidney tissue for liposomal Hoechst modified with RGD group.  The present study demonstrated that RGD-modified nano-liposomes can significantly improve drug retention time in the blood of rats.