Nanotechnology improves the therapeutic efficacy of gemcitabine against a human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line and minimizes its in vivo side effects

Polydopamine Nanoparticle-Based Combined Chemotherapy and Photothermal Therapy for the Treatment of Liver Cancer

Polydopamine nanoparticles (PDA NPs) are proposed as an anti-cancer tool against hepatocellular carcinoma through the combination of near-infrared (NIR)-mediated hyperthermia and loading with a chemotherapeutic drug, sorafenib (SRF). Cell membranes isolated from a liver cancer cell line (HepG2) have been exploited for the coating of the nanoparticles (thus obtaining CM-SRF-PDA NPs), to promote homotypic targeting toward cancer cells. The selective targeting ability and the combined photothermal and chemotherapeutic activity of the CM-SRF-PDA NPs following NIR irradiation have been evaluated on cell cultures in static and dynamic conditions, besides three-dimensional culture models. Eventually, the therapeutic effectiveness of the proposed approach has also been tested ex ovo on HepG2 spheroid-grafted quail embryos. This comprehensive investigation, supported by proteomic analysis, showed the effectiveness of the proposed nanoplatform and strongly suggests further pre-clinical testing in the treatment of liver cancer.

Design, Synthesis, Characterization, and Cytotoxicity of New Pyrazolylmethylene-2-thioxoimidazolidin-4-one Derivatives towards Androgen-Sensitive LNCaP Prostate Cancer Cells

A new class of pyrazolylmethylene-2-thioxoimidazolidin-4-one derivatives 3a-p were rationally designed and synthesized with the aim of exploring their potential as treatments for prostate cancer. The synthesized compounds 3a-p were biologically analyzed for their anticancer effects against AR+LNCaP, AR-PC-3, and Wi38 cell lines. The observed IC50 values against AR+LNCaP ranged between 10.27 ± 0.14 and 109.72 ± 2.06 µM after 24 h of incubation. Compounds 3i-k, 3m, and 3o-p recorded IC50 values of 05.22 ± 0.12 to 11.75 ± 0.07 µM after 48 h incubation in the presence of 1 nM DHT, with higher selectivity towards AR+LNCaP. Moreover, compounds 3i and 3k significantly induced Caspase 3 accumulation, reduced DNA content at the various stages of the cell cycle, and ultimately caused AR+LNCaP cell growth arrest, as confirmed by cell apoptosis assays. These findings suggest that these analogues of androgen receptor blockers have promising potential for further investigation as effective treatments for prostate cancer.

Gemcitabine and synthesized silver nanoparticles impact on chemically induced hepatocellular carcinoma in male rats

Objective: Gemcitabine (GEM) is a deoxycytidine analog chemotherapeutic drug widely used to treat many cancers. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are important nanomaterials used to treat many diseases. Using gamma radiation in nanoparticle preparation is a new eco-friendly method. This study aims to evaluate the efficiency of co-treating gemcitabine and silver nanoparticles in treating hepatocellular carcinoma. Method: The AgNPs were characterized using UV-visible spectroscopy, XRD, TEM, and EDX. The MTT cytotoxicity in vitro assay of gemcitabine, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide was assessed against Wi38 normal fibroblast and HepG2 HCC cell lines. After HCC development, rats received (10 µg/g b.wt.) of AgNPs three times a week for 4 weeks and/or GEM (5 mg/kg b.wt.) twice weekly for 4 weeks. Liver function enzymes were investigated. Cytochrome P450 and miR-21 genes were studied. Apoptosis was determined by using flow cytometry, and apoptotic modifications in signaling pathways were evaluated via Bcl-2, Bax, Caspase-9, and SMAD-4. Results: The co-treatment of GEM and AgNPs increased apoptosis by upregulating Bax and caspase 9 while diminishing Bcl2 and SMAD4. It also improved cytochrome P450 m-RNA relative expression. The results also proved the cooperation between GEM and AgNPs in deactivating miR21. The impact of AgNPs as an adjuvant treatment with GEM was recognized. Conclusions: The study showed that co-treating AgNPs and GEM can improve the efficiency of GEM alone in treating HCC. This is achieved by enhancing intrinsic and extrinsic apoptotic pathways while diminishing some drawbacks of using GEM alone.

FTO-mediated LINC01134 stabilization to promote chemoresistance through miR-140-3p/WNT5A/WNT pathway in PDAC

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly aggressive cancer most frequently detected at an advanced stage that limits treatment options to systemic chemotherapy, which has provided only marginal positive clinical outcomes. Currently, the first-line chemotherapeutic agent for PDAC is gemcitabine (GEM). However, the chemotherapy resistance to GEM is often overlooked in the clinical treatment of PDAC due to the lack of effective biological markers. Therefore, it is crucial to find new prognostic markers and therapeutic targets for patients with PDAC. In this study, we identified a novel regulatory mechanism in the development of resistance to GEM in PDAC. Here, we report that LINC01134 was significantly upregulated in primary tumors from PDAC patients. In vitro and in vivo functional studies revealed that LINC01134 promotes PDAC resistance to GEM through facilitating stem cell features and modulating the cell cycle. Mechanistically, LINC01134 interactes with tumor suppressor miR-497-5p in PDAC cells. Increased LINC01134 downregulates miR-140-3p to promotes the oncogenic WNT5A expression. Moreover, m6A demethylase FTO participated in the upregulation of LINC01134 by maintaining LINC01134 mRNA stability through YTHDF2. Taken together, the present study suggested FTO-mediated LINC01134 stabilization to promote chemotherapy resistance to GEM through miR-140-3p/WNT5A/WNT pathway in PDAC. Our study identified new prognostic markers and new therapeutic targets for patients with PDAC.

Nanotechnology in the Diagnostic and Therapy of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common liver malignancy and is among the top five most common cancers. Despite the progress of surgery and chemotherapy, the results are often disappointing, in part due to chemoresistance. This type of tumor has special characteristics that allow the improvement of diagnostic and treatment techniques used in clinical practice, by combining nanotechnology. This article presents a brief review of the literature focused on nano-conditioned diagnostic methods, targeted therapy, and therapeutic implications for the pathology of hepatocellular carcinoma. Within each subdomain, several modern technologies with significant impact were highlighted: serological, imaging, or histopathological diagnosis; intraoperative detection; carrier-type nano-conditioned therapy, thermal ablation, and gene therapy. The prospects offered by nanomedicine will strengthen the hope of more efficient diagnoses and therapies in the future.

Could Cisplatin Loading on Biosynthesized Silver Nanoparticles Improve Its Therapeutic Efficacy on Human Prostate Cancer Cell Line and Reduce Its In Vivo Nephrotoxic Effects?

Nanotechnology is a possible solution to the drawbacks of cancer therapy because it decreases the clinical side effects of chemotherapeutic drugs and increases their clinical activity. Thus, this work compared the in vitro cytotoxic activity and in vivo side effects of cisplatin (CP) with those of CP-loaded green silver nanoparticles (CP-AgNPs). The cytotoxic activity of CP, green AgNPs, and CP-AgNPs against PC-3, a human prostate cancer cell line, was assessed using MTT assay. CP-AgNPs had a superior cytotoxic effect on PC-3 cells with a 50% inhibition of viability (IC50) of 27.05 μg/mL, followed by CP with an IC50 of 57.64 μg/mL and AgNPs with an IC50 125.4 μg/mL. To evaluate in vivo side effects, 40 male adult Wistar rats were assigned into four groups and intraperitoneally injected with normal saline (control), CP (2.5 mg/kg body weight), green AgNPs (0.1 mL/kg body weight), and CP-AgNPs (2.5 mg/kg body weight). Intraperitoneal CP injection caused a substantial reduction in erythrocyte and leukocyte counts and hemoglobin concentration and a marked increase in urea and creatinine levels and disturbed the renal oxidant/antioxidant status. Furthermore, it caused noticeable structural alterations and significant upregulation of renal Bax and caspase-3 mRNA along with a significant downregulation of B-cell lymphoma 2 mRNA expressions. The loading of CP on green AgNPs significantly relieved the CP-induced pathological alterations and considerably enhanced its therapeutic effectiveness on PC-3 cells. These outcomes reflect the possible use of CP-AgNPs as a more efficient and safer anticancer agent than free CP.

Synergistic effect of baculovirus-mediated endostatin and angiostatin combined with gemcitabine in hepatocellular carcinoma

Anti-angiogenic gene therapy is a promising strategy in treating cancer. Endostatin and angiostatin are widely used in tumor anti-angiogenesis therapy. Our previous studies have shown that the BDS-hEA, a baculovirus long-term expressing the fusion protein of human endostatin and angiostatin, has a favorable effect in inhibiting the growth and angiogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma. The purpose of this study was to further investigate its synergistic antitumor efficiency in combination with low-dose chemotherapeutic gemcitabine (GEM) on the subcutaneous hepatocellular carcinoma xenograft model in nude mice. The results showed that the combined group significantly inhibited (P<0.05 or P<0.01 or P<0.001) the growth of tumor weight and volume, reduced the expression of ki67 (cell proliferation marker), CD31 (angiogenic marker) and Matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9, tumor invasion and metastasis marker) and increased the apoptosis of tumor cells compared with the monotherapy and control groups, respectively. Synergistic index results showed that BDS-hEA combined with GEM had a synergistic effect in inhibiting tumor volume, proliferation, microvessel density, metastasis and promoting tumor apoptosis. Furthermore, there were no metastatic nodules and obvious pathological changes in liver tissue of the combined group, and the serum liver function indicators aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), total bilirubin (T-BIL), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) were significantly reduced (P<0.05 or P<0.01 or P<0.001) in the BDS-hEA or GEM groups compared with the control group. Notably, the combined therapy showed lower levels of liver function indicators than the GEM group. These data support the view that the combination of BDS-hEA and GEM has a synergistic anti-tumor properties and can reduce the damage of liver to certain extent.

Hypoxia-alleviated nanoplatform to enhance chemosensitivity and sonodynamic effect in pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer is a severe disease that threatens human health. The hypoxic tumor microenvironment in pancreatic cancer leads to resistance to conventional therapies and helps to maintain tumor malignancy. First-line drugs present the disadvantage of systemic side effects, and a synergistic method with sonodynamic therapy (SDT) has been established as an emerging approach. In this study, we produced hypoxia-alleviating nanoplatforms (denoted as PZGI NPs) with zeolitic imidazolate frameworks-90 (ZIF-90) nanoparticles nucleating on platinum (Pt) nanoparticles and co-loaded with gemcitabine and IR780. This platform can catalyze peroxide to oxygen with loaded Pt nanoparticles to alleviate tumor hypoxia. Moreover, the loaded drugs could be quickly released in the lysosome microenvironment, which has a low pH value and high ATP level microenvironment in the mitochondria. This strategy could enhance the sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapy. Further, under ultrasound exposure, it could transfer the produced oxygen into a highly cytotoxic singlet oxygen for the augmented sonodynamic effect. Therefore, this multifunctional hypoxia-alleviating nanoplatform offers a promising strategy for chemo-sonodynamic therapy against pancreatic cancer.