Metallic Nanoparticles for Cancer Immunotherapy

Application Perspectives of Nanomedicine in Cancer Treatment

Cancer is a disease that seriously threatens human health. Based on the improvement of traditional treatment methods and the development of new treatment modes, the pattern of cancer treatment is constantly being optimized. Nanomedicine plays an important role in these evolving tumor treatment modalities. In this article, we outline the applications of nanomedicine in three important tumor-related fields: chemotherapy, gene therapy, and immunotherapy. According to the current common problems, such as poor targeting of first-line chemotherapy drugs, easy destruction of nucleic acid drugs, and common immune-related adverse events in immunotherapy, we discuss how nanomedicine can be combined with these treatment modalities, provide typical examples, and summarize the advantages brought by the application of nanomedicine.

Tracing New Landscapes in the Arena of Nanoparticle-Based Cancer Immunotherapy

Over the past two decades, unique and comprehensive cancer treatment has ushered new hope in the holistic management of the disease. Cancer immunotherapy, which harnesses the immune system of the patient to attack the cancer cells in a targeted manner, scores over others by being less debilitating compared to the existing treatment strategies. Significant advancements in the knowledge of immune surveillance in the last few decades have led to the development of several types of immune therapy like monoclonal antibodies, cancer vaccines, immune checkpoint inhibitors, T-cell transfer therapy or adoptive cell therapy (ACT) and immune system modulators. Intensive research has established cancer immunotherapy to be a safe and effective method for improving survival and the quality of a patient’s life. However, numerous issues with respect to site-specific delivery, resistance to immunotherapy, and escape of cancer cells from immune responses, need to be addressed for expanding and utilizing this therapy as a regular mode in the clinical treatment. Development in the field of nanotechnology has augmented the therapeutic efficiency of treatment modalities of immunotherapy. Nanocarriers could be used as vehicles because of their advantages such as increased surface areas, targeted delivery, controlled surface and release chemistry, enhanced permeation and retention effect, etc. They could enhance the function of immune cells by incorporating immunomodulatory agents that influence the tumor microenvironment, thus enabling antitumor immunity. Robust validation of the combined effect of nanotechnology and immunotherapy techniques in the clinics has paved the way for a better treatment option for cancer than the already existing procedures such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In this review, we discuss the current applications of nanoparticles in the development of ‘smart’ cancer immunotherapeutic agents like ACT, cancer vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, their site-specific delivery, and modulation of other endogenous immune cells. We also highlight the immense possibilities of using nanotechnology to accomplish leveraging the coordinated and adaptive immune system of a patient to tackle the complexity of treating unique disease conditions and provide future prospects in the field of cancer immunotherapy.

Biomedical applications of metallic nanoparticles in cancer: Current status and future perspectives

The current advancements in nanotechnology are as an outcome of the development of engineered nanoparticles. Various metallic nanoparticles have been extensively explored for various biomedical applications. They attract lot of attention in biomedical field due to their significant inert nature, and nanoscale structures, with size similar to many biological molecules. Their intrinsic characteristics which include electronic, optical, physicochemical and, surface plasmon resonance, that can be changed by altering certain particle characteristics such as size, shape, environment, aspect ratio, ease of synthesis and functionalization properties have led to numerous applications in various fields of biomedicine. These include targeted drug delivery, sensing, photothermal and photodynamic therapy, imaging, as well as the modulation of two or three applications. The current article also discusses about the various properties of metallic nanoparticles and their applications in cancer imaging and therapeutics. The associated bottlenecks related to their clinical translation are also discussed.

Multiplexed Analysis of the Cellular Uptake of Polymeric Nanocarriers

Polymeric nanocarriers (PNCs) are versatile drug delivery vehicles capable of delivering a variety of therapeutics. Quantitatively monitoring their uptake in biological systems is essential for realizing their potential as next-generation delivery systems; however, existing quantification strategies are limited due to the challenges of detecting polymeric materials in complex biological samples. Here, we describe a metal-coded mass tagging approach that enables the multiplexed quantification of the PNC uptake in cells using mass spectrometry (MS). In this approach, PNCs are conjugated with ligands that bind strongly to lanthanide ions, allowing the PNCs to be sensitively quantitated by inductively coupled plasma-MS. The metal-coded tags have little effect on the properties or toxicity of the PNCs, making them biocompatible. We demonstrate that the conjugation of different metals to the PNCs enables the multiplexed analysis of cellular uptake of multiple distinct PNCs at the same time. This multiplexing capability should improve the design and optimization of PNCs by minimizing biological variability and reducing analysis time, effort, and cost.

Novel Tumor-Targeting Nanoparticles for Cancer Treatment-A Review

Being one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide, cancer represents an ongoing interdisciplinary challenge for the scientific community. As currently used treatments may face limitations in terms of both efficiency and adverse effects, continuous research has been directed towards overcoming existing challenges and finding safer specific alternatives. In particular, increasing interest has been gathered around integrating nanotechnology in cancer management and subsequentially developing various tumor-targeting nanoparticles for cancer applications. In this respect, the present paper briefly describes the most used cancer treatments in clinical practice to set a reference framework for recent research findings, further focusing on the novel developments in the field. More specifically, this review elaborates on the top recent studies concerning various nanomaterials (i.e., carbon-based, metal-based, liposomes, cubosomes, lipid-based, polymer-based, micelles, virus-based, exosomes, and cell membrane-coated nanomaterials) that show promising potential in different cancer applications.

Superparamagnetic Hyperthermia Study with Cobalt Ferrite Nanoparticles Covered with γ-Cyclodextrins by Computer Simulation for Application in Alternative Cancer Therapy

In this paper, we present a study by computer simulation on superparamagnetic hyperthermia with CoFe2O4 ferrimagnetic nanoparticles coated with biocompatible gamma-cyclodextrins (γ-CDs) to be used in alternative cancer therapy with increased efficacy and non-toxicity. The specific loss power that leads to the heating of nanoparticles in superparamagnetic hyperthermia using CoFe2O4-γ-CDs was analyzed in detail depending on the size of the nanoparticles, the thickness of the γ-CDs layer on the nanoparticle surface, the amplitude and frequency of the alternating magnetic field, and the packing fraction of nanoparticles, in order to find the proper conditions in which the specific loss power is maximal. We found that the maximum specific loss power was determined by the Brown magnetic relaxation processes, and the maximum power obtained was significantly higher than that which would be obtained by the Néel relaxation processes under the same conditions. Moreover, increasing the amplitude of the magnetic field led to a significant decrease in the optimal diameter at which the maximum specific loss power is obtained (e.g., for 500 kHz frequency the optimal diameter decreased from 13.6 nm to 9.8 nm when the field increased from 10 kA/m to 50 kA/m), constituting a major advantage in magnetic hyperthermia for its optimization, in contrast to the known results in the absence of cyclodextrins from the surface of immobilized nanoparticles of CoFe2O4, where the optimal diameter remained practically unchanged at ~6.2 nm.

Recent Developments in Metallic Nanomaterials for Cancer Therapy, Diagnosing and Imaging Applications

Cancer continues to represent a global health concern, imposing an ongoing need to research for better treatment alternatives. In this context, nanomedicine seems to be the solution to existing problems, bringing unprecedented results in various biomedical applications, including cancer therapy, diagnosing, and imaging. As numerous studies have uncovered the advantageous properties of various nanoscale metals, this review aims to present metal-based nanoparticles that are most frequently employed for cancer applications. This paper follows the description of relevant nanoparticles made of metals, metal derivatives, hybrids, and alloys, further discussing in more detail their potential applications in cancer management, ranging from the delivery of chemotherapeutics, vaccines, and genes to ablative hyperthermia therapies and theranostic platforms.

Recent Development in Metallic Nanoparticles for Breast Cancer Therapy and Diagnosis

Metal-based nanoparticles are very promising for their applications in cancer diagnosis, drug delivery and therapy. Breast cancer is the major reason of death in woman especially in developed countries including EU and USA. Due to the heterogeneity of cancer cells, nanoparticles are effective as therapeutics and diagnostics. Anti-cancer therapy of breast tumors is challenging because of highly metastatic progression of the disease to brain, bone, lung, and liver. Magnetic nanoparticles are crucial for metastatic breast cancer detection and protection. This review comprehensively discusses the application of nanomaterials as breast cancer therapy, therapeutics, and diagnostics.

Multifunctional Gold Nanoparticles for Improved Diagnostic and Therapeutic Applications: A Review

The medical properties of metals have been explored for centuries in traditional medicine for the treatment of infections and diseases and still practiced to date. Platinum-based drugs are the first class of metal-based drugs to be clinically used as anticancer agents following the approval of cisplatin by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over 40 years ago. Since then, more metals with health benefits have been approved for clinical trials. Interestingly, when these metals are reduced to metallic nanoparticles, they displayed unique and novel properties that were superior to their bulk counterparts. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are among the FDA-approved metallic nanoparticles and have shown great promise in a variety of roles in medicine. They were used as drug delivery, photothermal (PT), contrast, therapeutic, radiosensitizing, and gene transfection agents. Their biomedical applications are reviewed herein, covering their potential use in disease diagnosis and therapy. Some of the AuNP-based systems that are approved for clinical trials are also discussed, as well as the potential health threats of AuNPs and some strategies that can be used to improve their biocompatibility. The reviewed studies offer proof of principle that AuNP-based systems could potentially be used alone or in combination with the conventional systems to improve their efficacy.

Smart biomaterials to enhance the efficiency of immunotherapy in glioblastoma: State of the art and future perspectives

Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) is considered as the most lethal tumor among CNS malignancies. Although immunotherapy has achieved remarkable advances in cancer treatment, it has not shown satisfactory results in GBM patients. Biomaterial science, along with nanobiotechnology, is able to optimize the efficiency of immunotherapy in these patients. They can be employed to provide the specific activation of immune cells in tumor tissue and combinational therapy as well as preventing systemic adverse effects resulting from hyperactivation of immune responses and off-targeting effect. Advance biomaterials in this field are classified into targeting nanocarriers and localized delivery systems. This review will offer an overview of immunotherapy strategies for glioblastoma and advance delivery systems for immunotherapeutics that may have a high potential in glioblastoma treatment.

Crosstalk between circRNAs and the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway in cancer progression

Circular RNAs (circRNAs), covalently closed noncoding RNAs, are widely expressed in eukaryotes and viruses. They can function by regulating target gene expression, linear RNA transcription and protein generation. The phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling pathway plays key roles in many biological and cellular processes, such as cell proliferation, growth, invasion, migration, and angiogenesis. It also plays a pivotal role in cancer progression. Emerging data suggest that the circRNA/PI3K/AKT axis modulates the expression of cancer-associated genes and thus regulates tumor progression. Aberrant regulation of the expression of circRNAs in the circRNA/PI3K/AKT axis is significantly associated with clinicopathological characteristics and plays an important role in the regulation of biological functions. In this review, we summarized the expression and biological functions of PI3K-AKT-related circRNAs in vitro and in vivo and assessed their associations with clinicopathological characteristics. We also further discussed the important role of circRNAs in the diagnosis, prognostication, and treatment of cancers.

Anticancer Activity of Selenium Nanoparticles In Vitro Studies

Health systems worldwide consider cancer a disease that causes the highest number of deaths per year. The low efficacy of current cancer therapies has led other areas of science to search for new alternatives, including nanomaterial sciences. Selenium nanoparticles have anticancer activity, as revealed by in vitro tests performed on prostate, breast, cervical, lung, colorectal, and liver cancer cell lines. Studies attribute anticancer activity to the anti-metastatic effect due to the inhibition of migration and invasion processes. The antiproliferative effect is the low expression of molecules such as cyclin D1, cyclin E, and CDK2. In addition to the activation of cell apoptosis by caspase-dependent mechanisms, there is a low expression of anti-apoptotic proteins such as Bcl-2 and a high expression of the apoptotic proteins like Bax and Bad. Other studies attribute anticancer activity to the activation of cell necroptosis, where molecules such as TNF and IRF1 participate. The pharmacological potential of selenium nanoparticles depends primarily on the administered dose, particle size, and chemical composition. Furthermore, several studies have shown that the administration of these nanoparticles is safe due to their low toxicity in non-cancerous cells. In this review, the most relevant antecedents on the anticancer potential of selenium nanoparticles in prostate, breast, cervical, lung, liver, and colorectal cancer cell lines are discussed.

Solution NMR of Nanoparticles in Serum: Protein Competition Influences Binding Thermodynamics and Kinetics

The spontaneous formation of a protein corona on a nanoparticle surface influences the physiological success or failure of the synthetic nanoparticle as a drug carrier or imaging agent used in vivo. A quantitative understanding of protein-nanoparticle interactions is therefore critical for the development of nanoparticle-based therapeutics. In this perspective, we briefly discuss the challenges and limitations of current approaches used for studying protein-nanoparticle binding in a realistic biological medium. Subsequently, we demonstrate that solution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a powerful tool to monitor protein competitive binding in a complex serum medium in situ. Importantly, when many serum proteins are competing for a gold nanoparticle (AuNP) surface, solution NMR is able to detect differences in binding thermodynamics, and kinetics of a tagged protein. Combined with other experimental approaches, solution NMR is an invaluable tool to understand protein behavior in the nanoparticle corona.

Long non‑coding RNA HCG11 suppresses the malignant phenotype of non‑small cell lung cancer cells by targeting a miR‑875/SATB2 axis

Long non‑coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in the development and progression of a variety of diseases. However, the role of the lncRNA HLA complex group 11 (HCG11) in non‑small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains unclear. The present study showed that the expression levels of HCG11 were reduced in tumor tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues, and similar results were obtained in experiments using lung cancer cell lines. Additionally, patients with high HCG11 expression had an increased survival rate compared with patients with low HCG11 expression. Further studies have shown that overexpression of HCG11 inhibited NSCLC cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Interestingly, it was observed that HCG11 expression was negatively associated with the expression levels of oncogenic microRNA‑875 (miR‑875) in patient specimens. Specifically, HCG11 served as a sponge of miR‑875. Notably, it was determined that special AT‑rich sequence‑binding protein 2 (SATB2) was a direct target gene of miR‑875, and overexpression of miR‑875 largely abrogated the effects of HCG11 in NSCLC cells. In conclusion, HCG11 was shown to suppress the malignant properties of NSCLC cells by targeting a miR‑875/SATB2 axis, and may therefore be a promising target for the treatment of NSCLC.

Design and Encapsulation of Immunomodulators onto Gold Nanoparticles in Cancer Immunotherapy

The aim of cancer immunotherapy is to reactivate autoimmune responses to combat cancer cells. To stimulate the immune system, immunomodulators, such as adjuvants, cytokines, vaccines, and checkpoint inhibitors, are extensively designed and studied. Immunomodulators have several drawbacks, such as drug instability, limited half-life, rapid drug clearance, and uncontrolled immune responses when used directly in cancer immunotherapy. Several strategies have been used to overcome these limitations. A simple and effective approach is the loading of immunomodulators onto gold-based nanoparticles (GNPs). As gold is highly biocompatible, GNPs can be administered intravenously, which aids in increasing cancer cell permeability and retention time. Various gold nanoplatforms, including nanospheres, nanoshells, nanorods, nanocages, and nanostars have been effectively used in cancer immunotherapy. Gold nanostars (GNS) are one of the most promising GNP platforms because of their unusual star-shaped geometry, which significantly increases light absorption and provides high photon-to-heat conversion efficiency due to the plasmonic effect. As a result, GNPs are a useful vehicle for delivering antigens and adjuvants that support the immune system in killing tumor cells by facilitating or activating cytotoxic T lymphocytes. This review represents recent progress in encapsulating immunomodulators into GNPs for utility in a cancer immunotherapeutic regimen.

Nanomaterials for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Head and Neck Cancers: A Review

Head and neck cancer (HNC) is a category of cancers that typically arise from the nose-, mouth-, and throat-lining squamous cells. The later stage of HNC diagnosis significantly affects the patient's survival rate. This makes it mandatory to diagnose this cancer with a suitable biomarker and imaging techniques at the earlier stages of growth. There are limitations to traditional technologies for early detection of HNC. Furthermore, the use of nanocarriers for delivering chemo-, radio-, and phototherapeutic drugs represents a promising approach for improving the outcome of HNC treatments. Several studies with nanostructures focus on the development of a targeted and sustained release of anticancer molecules with reduced side effects. Besides, nanovehicles could allow co-delivering of anticancer drugs for synergistic activity to counteract chemo- or radioresistance. Additionally, a new generation of smart nanomaterials with stimuli-responsive properties have been developed to distinguish between unique tumor conditions and healthy tissue. In this light, the present article reviews the mechanisms used by different nanostructures (metallic and metal oxide nanoparticles, polymeric nanoparticles, quantum dots, liposomes, nanomicelles, etc.) to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment, provides an up-to-date picture of the state of the art in this field, and highlights the major challenges for future improvements.

Aptamer-Targeted Photodynamic Platforms for Tumor Therapy

Achieving controlled and accurate delivery of photosensitizers (PSs) into tumor sites is a major challenge in conventional photodynamic therapy (PDT). Aptamer is a short oligonucleotide sequence (DNA or RNA) with a folded three-dimensional structure, which can selectively bind to specific small molecules, proteins, or the whole cells. Aptamers could act as ligands and be modified onto PSs or nanocarriers, enabling specific recognition and binding to tumor cells or their membrane proteins. The resultant aptamer-modified PSs or PSs-containing nanocarriers generate amounts of reactive oxygen species with light irradiation and obtain superior photodynamic therapeutic efficiency in tumors. Herein, we overview the recent progress in the designs and applications of aptamer-targeted photodynamic platforms for tumor therapy. First, we focus on the progress on the rational selection of aptamers and summarize the applications of aptamers which have been applied for targeted tumor diagnosis and therapy. Then, aptamer-targeted photodynamic therapies including various aptamer-PSs, aptamer-nanocarriers containing PSs, and aptamer-nano-photosensitizers are highlighted. The aptamer-targeted synergistically therapeutic platforms including PDT, photothermal therapy, and chemotherapy, as well as the imaging-guided theranostics, are also discussed. Finally, we offer an insight into the development trends and future perspectives of aptamer-targeted photodynamic platforms for tumor therapy.

Pre-coating of protein modulate patterns of corona formation, physiological stability and cytotoxicity of silver nanoparticles

Surface functionalization on silver nanoparticles greatly affects the dynamics of protein corona formation. In the present study, the implications of protein pre-coating on corona formation and nanoparticle's physiological stability, cellular uptake and toxicity were studied on similar sized alkaline protease coated nanoparticles of biological and chemical origin along with the uncoated nanoparticle as compared to the albumin coated nanoparticles. All four nanoparticle types invited serum protein adsorption on their surface. However, the presence of protein pre-coating on nanoparticle surface significantly reduced the extent of further protein binding. Moreover, corona formation on pristine nanoparticles significantly improved their stability in the biological medium. The effect was found to be diluted in protein pre-coated nanoparticles with due exception. Results obtained in the cell-based experiment suggested that the nanoparticles binding to the cell, its uptake, and toxicity in different cell lines can be directly linked to their physiological stability owing to corona formation.

Therapeutic potential of biogenic titanium dioxide nanoparticles: a review on mechanistic approaches

Biogenic titanium dioxide nanoparticles have unique size, shape and biochemical functional corona that embellish them with the potential to perform therapeutic actions such as anticancer, antimicrobial, antioxidant, larvicidal and photocatalysis by adopting various mechanistic or physiological approaches at the molecular level. We have provided a detailed overview of some of these physiological mechanisms, including disruption of the electron transport chain, DNA fragmentation, mitochondrial damage, induction of apoptosis, disorganization of the plasma membrane, inhibition of ATP synthase activity, suspension of cellular signaling pathways and inhibition of enzymatic activity. The biogenic synthesis of customized titanium dioxide nanoparticles has future application potentials to do breakthroughs in the pharmaceutical sectors to advance precision medicine and to better explain the disease prognosis and treatment strategies.

Molecular prospect of type-2 diabetes: Nanotechnology based diagnostics and therapeutic intervention

About ninety percent of all diabetic conditions account for T2D caused due to abnormal insulin secretion/ action or increased hepatic glucose production. Factors that contribute towards the aetiology of T2D could be well explained through biochemical, molecular, and cellular aspects. In this review, we attempt to explain the recent evolving molecular and cellular advancement associated with T2D pathophysiology. Current progress fabricated in T2D research concerning intracellular signaling cascade, inflammasome, autophagy, genetic and epigenetics changes is discretely explained in simple terms. Present available anti-diabetic therapeutic strategies commercialized and their limitations which are needed to be acknowledged are addressed in the current review. In particular, the pre-eminence of nanotechnology-based approaches to nullify the inadequacy of conventional anti-diabetic therapeutics and heterogeneous nanoparticulated systems exploited in diabetic researches are also discretely mentioned and are also listed in a tabular format in the review. Additionally, as a future prospect of nanotechnology, the review presents several strategic hypotheses to ameliorate the austerity of T2D by an engineered smart targeted nano-delivery system. In detail, an effort has been made to hypothesize novel nanotechnological based therapeutic strategies, which exploits previously described inflammasome, autophagic target points. Utilizing graphical description it is explained how a smart targeted nano-delivery system could promote β-cell growth and development by inducing the Wnt signaling pathway (inhibiting Gsk3β), inhibiting inflammasome (inhibiting NLRP3), and activating autophagic target points (protecting Atg3/Atg7 complex from oxidative stress) thereby might ameliorate the severity of T2D. Additionally, several targeting molecules associated with autophagic and epigenetic factors are also highlighted, which can be exploited in future diabetic research.

Magnetic Nanostructures as Emerging Therapeutic Tools to Boost Anti-Tumour Immunity

Cancer immunotherapy has shown remarkable results in various cancer types through a range of immunotherapeutic approaches, including chimeric antigen receptor-T cell (CAR-T) therapy, immune checkpoint blockade (ICB), and therapeutic vaccines. Despite the enormous potential of cancer immunotherapy, its application in various clinical settings has been limited by immune evasion and immune suppressive mechanisms occurring locally or systemically, low durable response rates, and severe side effects. In the last decades, the rapid advancement of nanotechnology has been aiming at the development of novel synthetic nanocarriers enabling precise and enhanced delivery of immunotherapeutics, while improving drug stability and effectiveness. Magnetic nanostructured formulations are particularly intriguing because of their easy surface functionalization, low cost, and robust manufacturing procedures, together with their suitability for the implementation of magnetically-guided and heat-based therapeutic strategies. Here, we summarize and discuss the unique features of magnetic-based nanostructures, which can be opportunely designed to potentiate classic immunotherapies, such as therapeutic vaccines, ICB, adoptive cell therapy (ACT), and in situ vaccination. Finally, we focus on how multifunctional magnetic delivery systems can facilitate the anti-tumour therapies relying on multiple immunotherapies and/or other therapeutic modalities. Combinatorial magnetic-based therapies are indeed offering the possibility to overcome current challenges in cancer immunotherapy.

A path toward the clinical translation of nano-based imaging contrast agents

Recently, nanoparticles have evolved ubiquitously in therapeutic applications to treat a range of diseases. Despite their regular use as therapeutic agents in the clinic, we have yet to see much progress in their clinical translation as diagnostic imaging agents. Several clinical and preclinical studies support their use as imaging contrast agents, but their use in the clinical setting has been limited to off-label imaging procedures (i.e., Feraheme). Since diagnostic imaging has been historically used as an exploratory tool to rule out disease or to screen patients for various cancers, nanoparticle toxicity remains a concern, especially when introducing exogenous contrast agents into a potentially healthy patient population, perhaps rationalizing why several nano-based therapeutic agents have been clinically translated before nano-based imaging agents. Another potential hindrance toward their clinical translation could be their market potential, as most therapeutic drugs have higher earning potential than small-molecule imaging contrast agents. With these considerations in mind, perhaps a clinical path forward for nano-based imaging contrast agents is to help guide/manage therapy. Several studies have demonstrated the ability of nanoparticles to produce more accurate imaging preoperatively, intraoperatively, and postoperatively. These applications illustrate a more reliable method of cancer detection and treatment that can prevent incomplete tumor resection and incorrect assessment of tumor progression following treatment. The aim of this review is to highlight the research that supports the use of nanoparticles in biomedical imaging applications and offer a new perspective to illustrate how nano-based imaging agents have the potential to better inform therapeutic decisions. This article is categorized under: Diagnostic Tools > In Vivo Nanodiagnostics and Imaging.

Study on the Molecular Mechanisms Against Human Breast Cancer from Insight of Elemental Distribution in Tissue Based on Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS)

The role of elements in physiological and pathological metabolic processes remains an unmet challenge in biomedical research and clinical applications. Herein, a visual elemental imaging of tumor tissue platform of a laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was developed to initially understand anti-tumor mechanisms. The relative enrichment degree and heterogeneous spatial distributions of four elements (calcium, sodium, copper, and magnesium) of tumor tissue from different treated could be easy to visualize. In particular, significant differences in the distribution of elements were observed in tumor tissue from drug-loading complex (hydrogel/DOX) treatment group. Correspondingly, the analysis of histopathological morphology showed that the morphology and density of tumor tissue in hydrogel/DOX treatment group changed obviously by using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining assay, meanwhile cleaved caspase-3 (caspase-3) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) were expressed at high levels tumors tissue in hydrogel/DOX treatment group by using immunohistochemical (IHC) staining. These results would endow different biological elements with incredible potential to study the mechanisms of anti-tumor, which opens new direction and perspectives for the multi-elemental mapping of biological tissues, especially in clinic application. The integrated platform of DNA nanohydrogel drug carrier-based anti-tumor treatment combined with LIBS elemental imaging, via tail intravenous injection of saline, hydrogel, DOX, and hydrogel/DOX in breast cancer xenograft tumor mice. (A) The workflow is outlined starting from nanohydrogel drug carrier-based anti-tumor treatment. (B) Schematic diagram of LIBS imaging platform.

Metallic nanoparticles as drug delivery system for the treatment of cancer

INTRODUCTION

The targeted delivery of anticancer agents to tumor is a major challenge because most of the drugs show off-target effect resulting in nonspecific cell death. Multifunctionalized metallic nanoparticles (NPs) are explored as new carrier system in the era of cancer therapeutics. Researchers investigated the potential of metallic NPs to target tumor cells by active and passive mechanisms, thereby reducing off-target effects of anticancer agents. Moreover, photocatalytic activity of upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) and the enhanced permeation and retention (EPR) effect have also gained wide potential in cancer treatment. Recent advancement in the field of nanotechnology highlights their potency for cancer therapy.

AREAS COVERED

This review summarizes the types of gold and silver metallic NPs with targeting mechanisms and their potentiality in cancer therapy.

EXPERT OPINION

Recent advances in the field of nanotechnology for cancer therapy offer high specificity and targeting efficiency. Targeting tumor cells through mechanistic pathways using metallic NPs for the disruption/alteration of molecular profile and survival rate of the tumor cells has led to an effective approach for cancer therapeutics. This alteration in the survival rate of the tumor cells might decrease the proliferation thereby resulting in more efficient management in the treatment of cancer.

Recent Advances in Nanotechnology-Based Diagnosis and Treatments of Human Osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma (OSA) is a type of bone cancer that begins in the cells that form bones.OSA is a rare mesenchymal bone neoplasm derived from mesenchymal stem cells. Genome disorganization, chromosomal modifications, deregulation of tumor suppressor genes, and DNA repair defects are the factors most responsible for OSA development. Despite significant advances in the diagnosing and treatment of OSA, patients' overall survival has not improved within the last twenty years. Lately, advances in modern nanotechnology have spurred development in OSA management and offered several advantages to overcome the drawbacks of conventional therapies. This technology has allowed the practical design of nanoscale devices combined with numerous functional molecules, including tumor-specific ligands, antibodies, anti-cancer drugs, and imaging probes. Thanks to their small sizes, desirable drug encapsulation efficiency, and good bioavailability, functionalized nanomaterials have found wide-spread applications for combating OSA progression. This review invokes the possible utility of engineered nanomaterials in OSA diagnosis and treatment, motivating the researchers to seek new strategies for tackling the challenges associated with it.

Cancer Vaccines: Adjuvant Potency, Importance of Age, Lifestyle, and Treatments

Although the discovery and characterization of multiple tumor antigens have sparked the development of many antigen/derived cancer vaccines, many are poorly immunogenic and thus, lack clinical efficacy. Adjuvants are therefore incorporated into vaccine formulations to trigger strong and long-lasting immune responses. Adjuvants have generally been classified into two categories: those that ‘depot’ antigens (e.g. mineral salts such as aluminum hydroxide, emulsions, liposomes) and those that act as immunostimulants (Toll Like Receptor agonists, saponins, cytokines). In addition, several novel technologies using vector-based delivery of antigens have been used. Unfortunately, the immune system declines with age, a phenomenon known as immunosenescence, and this is characterized by functional changes in both innate and adaptive cellular immunity systems as well as in lymph node architecture. While many of the immune functions decline over time, others paradoxically increase. Indeed, aging is known to be associated with a low level of chronic inflammation—inflamm-aging. Given that the median age of cancer diagnosis is 66 years and that immunotherapeutic interventions such as cancer vaccines are currently given in combination with or after other forms of treatments which themselves have immune-modulating potential such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the choice of adjuvants requires careful consideration in order to achieve the maximum immune response in a compromised environment. In addition, more clinical trials need to be performed to carefully assess how less conventional form of immune adjuvants, such as exercise, diet and psychological care which have all be shown to influence immune responses can be incorporated to improve the efficacy of cancer vaccines. In this review, adjuvants will be discussed with respect to the above-mentioned important elements.

Gum polysaccharide/nanometal hybrid biocomposites in cancer diagnosis and therapy

Biopolymers are of prime importance among which gum polysaccharides hold an eminent standing owing to their high availability and non-toxic nature. Gum biopolymers offer a greener alternative to synthetic polymers and toxic chemicals in the synthesis of metal nanostructures. Metal nanostructures accessible via eco-friendly means endow astounding characteristics to gum-based biocomposites in the field of diagnosis and therapy towards cancer diseases. In this review, assorted approaches for the assembly of nanomaterials mediated by gum biopolymers are presented and their utility in cancer diagnosis and therapy, e.g., bioimaging, radiotherapy, and phototherapy, are deliberated to provide a groundwork for future stimulative research.

Surface modified multifaceted nanocarriers for oral non-conventional cancer therapy; synthesis and evaluation

Inflammatory cells orchestrate tumor niche for the proliferating neoplastic cells, leading to neoangiogenesis, lymphangiogenesis, tumor growth and metastasis. Emergence of severe side effects, multiple drug resistance and associated high cost has rendered conventional chemotherapy less effectual. The aim was to develop a multipurpose, less toxic, more potent and cheaper, oral non-conventional anticancer therapeutic. Cyclooxygenase associated with tumor niche inflammation and proliferative neoplastic cells were targeted synergistically, through anti-inflammatory and anti-proliferative effects of model drug, diclofenac sodium and fluorescent silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), respectively. Drug entrapped AgNPs were surface modified with PVA (for controlling particle size, preferred cellular uptake, evading opsonization and improved dispersion). XRD, FTIR, DSC, TGA, LIBS, particle size and surface plasmon resonance analysis confirmed the efficient drug encapsulation and PVA coating with 62% loading efficiency. In-vitro, the formulation exhibited 1st order release kinetics with sustained and maximal release at slightly acidic conditions (pH 4.5) enabling the potential for passive tumor targeting. Also, nanoparticles showed efficient protein denaturation inhibition potential, hemo-compatibility (<0.8%) and potent anti-cancer activity (P < 0.05) against breast cancer cell line (MCF-7). In-vivo, developed nanoparticles improved pharmacokinetics (2.8 fold increased AUC, 6.9 h t_1/2, C_max = 1.6 ± 0.03 μg/ml, K_el = 0.1) and pharmacodynamics manifested by potent anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-pyretic effects (P < 0.05) at 20 fold lower doses. LD₅₀ determination revealed a wide therapeutic window. The study showed promise of synthesized nanomaterials as cheaper, less toxic, hemo-compatible, oral and more potent anti-inflammatory and non-conventional fluorescent anti-cancer agents, vanquishing tumor niche inflammation and repressing proliferation of malignant cells.

External and Internal Stimuli-Responsive Metallic Nanotherapeutics for Enhanced Anticancer Therapy

Therapeutic, diagnostic, and imaging approaches based on nanotechnology offer distinct advantages in cancer treatment. Various nanotherapeutics have been presented as potential alternatives to traditional anticancer therapies such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgical intervention. Notably, the advantage of nanotherapeutics is mainly attributable to their accumulation and targeting ability toward cancer cells, multiple drug-carrying abilities, combined therapies, and imaging approaches. To date, numerous nanoparticle formulations have been developed for anticancer therapy and among them, metallic nanotherapeutics reportedly demonstrate promising cancer therapeutic and diagnostic efficiencies owing to their dense surface functionalization ability, uniform size distribution, and shape-dependent optical responses, easy and cost-effective synthesis procedure, and multiple anti-cancer effects. Metallic nanotherapeutics can remodel the tumor microenvironment by changing unfavorable therapeutic conditions into therapeutically accessible ones with the help of different stimuli, including light, heat, ultrasound, an alternative magnetic field, redox, and reactive oxygen species. The combination of metallic nanotherapeutics with both external and internal stimuli can be used to trigger the on-demand release of therapeutic molecules, augmenting the therapeutic efficacies of anticancer therapies such as photothermal therapy, photodynamic therapy, magnetic hyperthermia, sonodynamic therapy, chemodynamic therapy, and immunotherapy. In this review, we have summarized the role of different metallic nanotherapeutics in anti-cancer therapy, as well as their combinational effects with multiple stimuli for enhanced anticancer therapy.

Drug Delivery Nanosystems in Glioblastoma Multiforme Treatment: Current State of the Art

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common primary malignant Central Nervous System cancer, responsible for about 4% of all deaths associated with neoplasia, characterized as one of the fatal human cancers. Tumor resection does not possess curative character, thereby radio and/or chemotherapy are often necessary for the treatment of GBM. However, drugs used in GBM chemotherapy present some limitations, such as side effects associated with non-specific drug biodistribution as well as limited bioavailability, which limits their clinical use. To attenuate the systemic toxicity and overcome the poor bioavailability, a very attractive approach is drug encapsulation in drug delivery nanosystems. The main focus of this review is to explore the actual cancer global problem, enunciate barriers to overcome in the pharmacological treatment of GBM, as well as the most updated drug delivery nanosystems for GBM treatment and how they influence biopharmaceutical properties of anti-GBM drugs. The discussion will approach lipid-based and polymeric nanosystems, as well as inorganic nanoparticles, regarding their technical aspects as well as biological effects in GBM treatment. Furthermore, the current state of the art, challenges to overcome and future perspectives in GBM treatment will be discussed.

Nanoparticles in cancer immunotherapies: An innovative strategy

Cancer has been one of the most significant causes of mortality, worldwide. Cancer immunotherapy has recently emerged as a competent, cancer-fighting clinical strategy. Nevertheless, due to the difficulty of such treatments, costs, and off-target adverse effects, the implementation of cancer immunotherapy described by the antigen-presenting cell (APC) vaccine and chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy ex vivo in large clinical trials have been limited. Nowadays, the nanoparticles theranostic system as a promising target-based modality provides new opportunities to improve cancer immunotherapy difficulties and reduce their adverse effects. Meanwhile, the appropriate engineering of nanoparticles taking into consideration nanoparticle characteristics, such as, size, shape, and surface features, as well as the use of these physicochemical properties for suitable biological interactions, provides new possibilities for the application of nanoparticles in cancer immunotherapy. In this review article, we focus on the latest state-of-the-art nanoparticle-based antigen/adjuvant delivery vehicle strategies to professional APCs and engineering specific T lymphocyte required for improving the efficiency of tumor-specific immunotherapy.

Understanding Nanoparticle Toxicity to Direct a Safe-by-Design Approach in Cancer Nanomedicine

Nanomedicine is a rapidly growing field that uses nanomaterials for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of various diseases, including cancer. Various biocompatible nanoplatforms with diversified capabilities for tumor targeting, imaging, and therapy have materialized to yield individualized therapy. However, due to their unique properties brought about by their small size, safety concerns have emerged as their physicochemical properties can lead to altered pharmacokinetics, with the potential to cross biological barriers. In addition, the intrinsic toxicity of some of the inorganic materials (i.e., heavy metals) and their ability to accumulate and persist in the human body has been a challenge to their translation. Successful clinical translation of these nanoparticles is heavily dependent on their stability, circulation time, access and bioavailability to disease sites, and their safety profile. This review covers preclinical and clinical inorganic-nanoparticle based nanomaterial utilized for cancer imaging and therapeutics. A special emphasis is put on the rational design to develop non-toxic/safe inorganic nanoparticle constructs to increase their viability as translatable nanomedicine for cancer therapies.

Nucleic acid biohybrid nanocarriers with high-therapeutic payload and controllable extended release of daunomycin for cancer therapy

We have developed a novel, nanosized drug carrier with high-therapeutic payload, controllable release, and the potential for active tumor targeting. It consists of a 15 nm gold nanoparticle with dense surface loading of DNA duplexes. We utilize the natural intercalating behavior of daunomycin to load the drug between DNA base pairs. We obtained a high-therapeutic payload of >1,000 drug molecules per gold nanoparticle (AuNP), one of the highest loadings reported in literature to date. We have engineered unique DNA sequences to control release of daunomycin for over 48 hr and show higher cell death compared to equivalent concentrations of free daunomycin. We have also explored cell internalization mechanisms to identify the pathways by which our gold nanoparticles enter the cell. This nanocarrier is in the ideal size range of 16-100 nm in diameter to utilize the enhanced permeability and retention effect for passive targeting to tumors. Our AuNP platform is effective as a therapeutic drug delivery device and can easily incorporate any aptamer of choice through complementary base pairing. Our work has produced an innovative nanoscale drug-delivery platform potentially leading to personalized cancer therapies through careful selection of aptamers and an adjustable drug release profile.

Advances in non and minimal-invasive transcutaneous delivery of immunotherapy for cancer treatment

Cancer research has focused on figuring out what was the difference between cancer cells and the tissues within which cancer arose and developing targeted treatments for those differences. With FDA-approved treatments for more ten different cancers and more than thousand new clinical trials, immunotherapy has recently emerged as the most promising area of cancer research by improving efficacy and controlling the adverse effects. Transcutaneous delivery drug delivery offers a number of advantages for the patient because of not only its noninvasive and convenient nature but also factors such as avoidance of first-pass metabolism and prevention of gastrointestinal degradation. The purpose of this review was to highlight technological recent approaches to non and minimal-invasive delivery of immunotherapy for cancer treatment. Finally, some practical considerations and discussions for future studies in the field of transdermal immunomodulation are also included.

Blood-brain barrier amenable gold nanoparticles biofabrication in aged cell culture medium

Green fabrication of nanoscale materials is highly desirable because of associated adverse effects with conventional nanomaterial biomedical applications. Moreover, the higher selective nature of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) limits the brain ailments treatment through conventional chemotherapy, thus providing room for nanotechnology-based modalities for BBB traversing. In this contribution, we have biosynthesized gold nanoparticles from the HAuCl4 solution in the aged cells culture medium. This approach is highly facile without any other chemical utilization. The cell culture medium age and cell number can tune the Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) size from 2 to several hundred nm. The 24 h MTT assay and cell uptake studies in vitro and murine models' vital organs (liver, kidney, spleen, lung, and heart) study up to 48 h demonstrated that biosynthesized AuNPs were biocompatible and BBB amenable. Interestingly, the transferrin and cell culture medium isolated proteins were found factors responsible for HAuCl4 solution biomineralization and size control. Moreover, the protein corona on biosynthesized AuNPs could help them traverse BBB both in vitro and in vivo, suggesting their potential applications for brain disease theranostics. In conclusion, the biosynthesis of AuNPs from aged cells medium is highly facile, green, and biocompatible for brain disease theranostics.

Application of Nanomaterials in Biomedical Imaging and Cancer Therapy

Nanomaterials, such as nanoparticles, nanorods, nanosphere, nanoshells, and nanostars, are very commonly used in biomedical imaging and cancer therapy. They make excellent drug carriers, imaging contrast agents, photothermal agents, photoacoustic agents, and radiation dose enhancers, among other applications. Recent advances in nanotechnology have led to the use of nanomaterials in many areas of functional imaging, cancer therapy, and synergistic combinational platforms. This review will systematically explore various applications of nanomaterials in biomedical imaging and cancer therapy. The medical imaging modalities include magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, positron emission tomography, single photon emission computerized tomography, optical imaging, ultrasound, and photoacoustic imaging. Various cancer therapeutic methods will also be included, including photothermal therapy, photodynamic therapy, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy. This review also covers theranostics, which use the same agent in diagnosis and therapy. This includes recent advances in multimodality imaging, image-guided therapy, and combination therapy. We found that the continuous advances of synthesis and design of novel nanomaterials will enhance the future development of medical imaging and cancer therapy. However, more resources should be available to examine side effects and cell toxicity when using nanomaterials in humans.

Microfluidic-mediated nano-drug delivery systems: from fundamentals to fabrication for advanced therapeutic applications

Nano-drug delivery systems (NDDS) are functional drug-loaded nanocarriers extensively applied in the healthcare and pharmaceutical areas. Recently, microfluidics has been demonstrated as one of the most promising techniques to fabricate high-performance NDDS with uniform morphology, size and size distribution, reduced batch-to-batch variations and controllable drug delivering capacity. Here, a brief review of the microfluidic-mediated NDDS is presented. The fundamentals of microfluidics are first interpreted with an emphasis on the fluid characteristics, design and materials for microfluidic devices. Then a comprehensive and in-depth depiction of the microfluidic-mediated fabrications of controllable NDDS with well-tailored internal structures and integrated functions for controlled encapsulation and drug release are categorized and reviewed, with particular descriptions about the underlying formation mechanisms. Afterwards, recently appreciated representative applications of the microfluidic-mediated NDDS for delivering multiple drugs are systematically summarized. Finally, conclusions and perspectives on further advancing the microfluidic-mediated NDDS toward more powerful and versatile platforms for therapeutic applications are discussed.

Metaheuristics and Pontryagin's minimum principle for optimal therapeutic protocols in cancer immunotherapy: a case study and methods comparison

In this paper, the performance appropriateness of population-based metaheuristics for immunotherapy protocols is investigated on a comparative basis while the goal is to stimulate the immune system to defend against cancer. For this purpose, genetic algorithm and particle swarm optimization are employed and compared with modern method of Pontryagin's minimum principle (PMP). To this end, a well-known mathematical model of cell-based cancer immunotherapy is described and examined to formulate the optimal control problem in which the objective is the annihilation of tumour cells by using the minimum amount of cultured immune cells. In this regard, the main aims are: (i) to introduce a single-objective optimization problem and to design the considered metaheuristics in order to appropriately deal with it; (ii) to use the PMP in order to obtain the necessary conditions for optimality, i.e. the governing boundary value problem; (iii) to measure the results obtained by using the proposed metaheuristics against those results obtained by using an indirect approach called forward-backward sweep method; and finally (iv) to produce a set of optimal treatment strategies by formulating the problem in a bi-objective form and demonstrating its advantages over single-objective optimization problem. A set of obtained results conforms the performance capabilities of the considered metaheuristics.