Design and Synthesis of New Cholesterol-Conjugated 5-Fluorouracil: A Novel Potential Delivery System for Cancer Treatment

Abstract

Cholesterol-conjugated 5-fluorouracil prodrugs were designed to be carried in vivo via low density lipoproteins (LDL) and subsequently undergo LDL-receptor-mediated internalisation into cancer cells. In vivo anti-cancer evaluation was performed using 5-fluorouracil-cholesterol conjugate in a mouse model. The obtained prodrugs were more potent than 5-fluorouracil control drug at the same 5-fluorouracil content (3 mg·kg−1).

Keywords

• drug targeting
• anticancer
• cholesteryl esters