Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a life-threatening lung disease. Despite the availability of several approved drugs, the development of a new treatment method is needed because of poor prognosis. Tissue selective drug delivery systems can avoid the adverse effects of current therapy and enhance efficacy. We evaluated the possibility of delivering drugs to the lungs of a PH rat model using fluorescence dye-labeled nanosized liposomes. To evaluate the tissue distribution following systemic exposure, fluorescent dye-labeled, 40-180 nm liposomes with and without polyethylene glycol (PEG) were intravenously administered to a monocrotaline-induced PH (MCT) rat model and tissue fluorescence was measured. Fluorescent dye-containing liposomes were intratracheally administered to the MCT model to evaluate the distribution of the liposome-encapsulated compound following local administration to reduce systemic exposure. The lung vascular permeability, plasma concentration of surfactant protein (SP)-D, lung reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and macrophage marker gene cluster of differentiation (CD68) expression were measured. PEG and 80-nm liposome accumulation in the lung was elevated in the MCT model compared to that in normal rats. The intratracheally administered liposomes were delivered selectively to the lungs of the MCT model. The lung vascular permeability, plasma SP-D concentration, and CD68 expression were significantly elevated in the lungs of the MCT model, and were all significantly and positively correlated to liposome lung accumulation. Liposomes can accumulate in the lungs of an MCT model by enhancing vascular permeability by the inflammatory response. Therefore, drug encapsulation in liposomes could be an effective method of drug delivery in patients with PH.
Keywords: liposome; nanoparticle; pulmonary hypertension.