Carboxymethyl-β-1,3-D-glucan (CMG)-gemcitabine conjugate improves the anticancer efficacy and alleviate the toxicity of gemcitabine (GEM)

Gemcitabine (GEM) is an antitumor drug approved by the US FDA in 1996. It is used to treat cancer and solid tumours, but its effectiveness is limited by toxicity. Carboxymethyl-β-1,3-D-glucan (CMG) is a derivative of β-glucan with improved solubility. In a study, GEM was conjugated to CMG (GG) with a stable amino acid linker to enhance efficacy and reduce toxicity. GG showed significant inhibition on LLC tumour cells with IC₅₀ value of 2.7 compared to GEM at 0.5248, and was less toxic to normal cells. In C57BL/6 mice, GG had anti-lung cancer effects in vitro and in vivo by decreasing expression of apoptosis-related proteins. The study indicates GG's potential as an anti-tumour drug for lung cancer with reduced toxicity, paving the way for further research.