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Espuche B, Moya SE, Calderón M. Nanogels: Smart tools to enlarge the therapeutic window of gene therapy. Int J Pharm 2024; 653:123864. [PMID: 38309484 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2024.123864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2023] [Revised: 01/09/2024] [Accepted: 01/25/2024] [Indexed: 02/05/2024]
Abstract
Gene therapy can potentially treat a great number of diseases, from cancer to rare genetic disorders. Very recently, the development and emergency approval of nucleic acid-based COVID-19 vaccines confirmed its strength and versatility. However, gene therapy encounters limitations due to the lack of suitable carriers to vectorize therapeutic genetic material inside target cells. Nanogels are highly hydrated nano-size crosslinked polymeric networks that have been used in many biomedical applications, from drug delivery to tissue engineering and diagnostics. Due to their easy production, tunability, and swelling properties they have called the attention as promising vectors for gene delivery. In this review, nanogels are discussed as vectors for nucleic acid delivery aiming to enlarge gene therapy's therapeutic window. Recent works highlighting the optimization of inherent transfection efficiency and biocompatibility are reviewed here. The importance of the monomer choice, along with the internal structure, surface decoration, and responsive features are outlined for the different transfection modalities. The possible sources of toxicological endpoints in nanogels are analyzed, and the strategies to limit them are compared. Finally, perspectives are discussed to identify the remining challenges for the nanogels before their translation to the market as transfection agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Espuche
- Center for Cooperative Research in Biomaterials (CIC biomaGUNE), Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Paseo de Miramon 194, 20014 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain; POLYMAT, Applied Chemistry Department, Faculty of Chemistry, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal 3, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - Sergio E Moya
- Center for Cooperative Research in Biomaterials (CIC biomaGUNE), Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Paseo de Miramon 194, 20014 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
| | - Marcelo Calderón
- POLYMAT, Applied Chemistry Department, Faculty of Chemistry, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal 3, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain; IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Plaza Euskadi 5, 48009 Bilbao, Spain.
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Kubota Y, Hoshiko T, Higashi T, Motoyama K, Okada S, Kimura S. Folate-Appended Hydroxypropyl-β-Cyclodextrin Induces Autophagic Cell Death in Acute Myeloid Leukemia Cells. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:16720. [PMID: 38069042 PMCID: PMC10706821 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242316720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2023] [Revised: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a heterogenous myeloid neoplasm that remains challenging to treat. Because intensive conventional chemotherapy reduces survival rates in elderly patients, drugs with lower toxicity and fewer side effects are needed urgently. 2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CyD) is used clinically as a pharmaceutical excipient for poorly water-soluble drugs. Previously, we showed that HP-β-CyD exerts antitumor activity by disrupting cholesterol homeostasis. Recently, we developed folate-conjugated HP-β-CyD (FA-HP-β-CyD) and demonstrated its potential as a new antitumor agent that induces not only apoptosis, but also autophagic cell death; however, we do not know whether FA-HP-β-CyD exerts these effects against AML. Here, we investigated the effects of FA-HP-β-CyD on folate receptor (FR)-expressing AML cells. We found that the cytotoxic activity of FA-HP-β-CyD against AML cells was stronger than that of HP-β-CyD. Also, FA-HP-CyD induced the formation of autophagosomes in AML cell lines. FA-HP-β-CyD increased the inhibitory effects of cytarabine and a BCL-2-selective inhibitor, Venetoclax, which are commonly used treat elderly AML patients. Notably, FA-HP-β-CyD suppressed the proliferation of AML cells in BALB/c nude recombinase-activating gene-2 (Rag-2)/Janus kinase 3 (Jak3) double-deficient mice with AML. These results suggest that FA-HP-β-CyD acts as a potent anticancer agent for AML chemotherapy by regulating autophagy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasushi Kubota
- Division of Hematology, Respiratory Medicine and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga 849-8501, Japan;
- Department of Transfusion Medicine and Cell Therapy, Saitama Medical Center, Saitama Medical University, Kawagoe 350-8550, Japan
| | - Toshimi Hoshiko
- Division of Hematology, Respiratory Medicine and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga 849-8501, Japan;
| | - Taishi Higashi
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto 862-0973, Japan; (T.H.); (K.M.)
| | - Keiichi Motoyama
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto 862-0973, Japan; (T.H.); (K.M.)
| | - Seiji Okada
- Division of Hematopoiesis, Joint Research Center for Human Retrovirus Infection, Kumamoto 860-0811, Japan;
| | - Shinya Kimura
- Division of Hematology, Respiratory Medicine and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga 849-8501, Japan;
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Sousa de Almeida M, Rothen-Rutishauser B, Mayer M, Taskova M. Multi-Functionalized Heteroduplex Antisense Oligonucleotides for Targeted Intracellular Delivery and Gene Silencing in HeLa Cells. Biomedicines 2022; 10:biomedicines10092096. [PMID: 36140196 PMCID: PMC9495875 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10092096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Revised: 08/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Oligonucleotide therapeutics, antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) and short interfering RNA (siRNA) are short synthetic nucleic acid molecules with a promising potential to treat a wide range of diseases. Despite considerable progress in the field, the development of safe and effective delivery systems that target organs and tissues other than the liver is challenging. While keeping possible off-target oligonucleotide interactions and toxicity related to chemical modifications in mind, innovative solutions for targeted intracellular delivery are highly needed. Herein, we report on the design, synthesis and testing of a novel multi-modified and multi-functionalized heteroduplex oligonucleotide (HDO) with respect to its intracellular delivery and its ability to silence genes in HeLa cells. Simultaneously, folic acid- and peptide- labeled HDO show proficient silencing of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene with an 84% reduction in the GFP fluorescence. In addition, the Bcl2 HDO achieved effective Bcl2 gene knockdown in the cells. The data show the proficiency of the multi-functionalization strategy and provide an example for advancing the design of safe and efficient forthcoming oligonucleotide therapeutics, such as HDO.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauro Sousa de Almeida
- BioNanomaterials, Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Chemin des Verdiers 4, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Barbara Rothen-Rutishauser
- BioNanomaterials, Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Chemin des Verdiers 4, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Michael Mayer
- Biophysics, Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Chemin des Verdiers 4, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Maria Taskova
- Biophysics, Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Chemin des Verdiers 4, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
- Correspondence:
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Hoshiko T, Kubota Y, Onodera R, Higashi T, Yokoo M, Motoyama K, Kimura S. Folic Acid-Appended Hydroxypropyl-β-Cyclodextrin Exhibits Potent Antitumor Activity in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Cells via Autophagic Cell Death. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:cancers13215413. [PMID: 34771576 PMCID: PMC8582559 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13215413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2021] [Revised: 10/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary 2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CyD) is a cyclic oligosaccharide widely used as an excipient in pharmaceutical preparations, in addition to also being used as a cholesterol regulator. HP-β-CyD was used in clinical trials for patients with Niemann-Pick Type C disease to remove accumulated intracellular lipid. HP-β-CyD has anti-leukemia activity by inducing apoptosis and cell-cycle arrest; however, the antitumor activity of HP-β-CyD lacks tumor cell-selectivity. Taking advantage of the fact that folate receptors are highly expressed in many cancer cells, we synthesized folate-appended HP-β-CyD (FA-HP-β-CyD) to confer tumor cell-selectivity to HP-β-CyD. FA-HP-β-CyD inhibited the proliferation of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) cells and the mechanism underlying the effect of FA-HP-β-CyD in inducing cell death may involve autophagy. The combination of FA-HP-β-CyD and ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitors (imatinib and ponatinib) had a synergistic inhibitory effect on CML cells. In a mouse model of BCR-ABL-induced leukemia, FA-HP-β-CyD had a stronger inhibitory effect on leukemia progression than HP-β-CyD or imatinib. Abstract 2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CyD) is widely used as an enabling excipient in pharmaceutical formulations. We previously demonstrated that HP-β-CyD disrupted cholesterol homeostasis, and inhibited the proliferation of leukemia cells by inducing apoptosis and cell-cycle arrest. Recently developed drug delivery systems using folic acid (FA) and folic acid receptors (FR) are currently being used in cancer treatment. To confer tumor cell-selectivity to HP-β-CyD, we synthesized folate-appended HP-β-CyD (FA-HP-β-CyD) and evaluated the potential of FA-HP-β-CyD as an anticancer agent using chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) cells in vitro and in vivo. FA-HP-β-CyD inhibited the growth of FR-expressing cells but not that of FR-negative cells. FA-HP-β-CyD had stronger anti-leukemia and cell-binding activities than HP-β-CyD in CML cells. Unlike HP-β-CyD, FA-HP-β-CyD entered CML cells through endocytosis and induced both apoptosis and autophagy via mitophagy. FA-HP-β-CyD increased the inhibitory effects of the ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitors imatinib mesylate and ponatinib, which are commonly used in CML. In vivo experiments in a BCR-ABL leukemia mouse model showed that FA-HP-β-CyD was more effective than HP-β-CyD at a ten-fold lower dose. These results indicate that FA-HP-β-CyD may be a novel tumor-targeting agent for the treatment of leukemia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toshimi Hoshiko
- Division of Hematology, Respiratory Medicine and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga 849-8501, Japan; (T.H.); (Y.K.)
| | - Yasushi Kubota
- Division of Hematology, Respiratory Medicine and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga 849-8501, Japan; (T.H.); (Y.K.)
- Saitama Medical Center, Department of Transfusion Medicine and Cell Therapy, Saitama Medical University, Kawagoe 350-8550, Japan
| | - Risako Onodera
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto 862-0973, Japan; (R.O.); (T.H.); (K.M.)
| | - Taishi Higashi
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto 862-0973, Japan; (R.O.); (T.H.); (K.M.)
- Priority Organization for Innovation and Excellence, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto 862-0973, Japan
| | - Masako Yokoo
- Saga Medical Center Koseikan, Department of Hematology, Saga 849-8571, Japan;
| | - Keiichi Motoyama
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto 862-0973, Japan; (R.O.); (T.H.); (K.M.)
| | - Shinya Kimura
- Division of Hematology, Respiratory Medicine and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga 849-8501, Japan; (T.H.); (Y.K.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +81-952-34-2353; Fax: +81-952-34-2017
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Elcheva IA, Spiegelman VS. The Role of cis- and trans-Acting RNA Regulatory Elements in Leukemia. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:E3854. [PMID: 33419342 PMCID: PMC7766907 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12123854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Revised: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/08/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
RNA molecules are a source of phenotypic diversity and an operating system that connects multiple genetic and metabolic processes in the cell. A dysregulated RNA network is a common feature of cancer. Aberrant expression of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), micro RNA (miRNA), and circular RNA (circRNA) in tumors compared to their normal counterparts, as well as the recurrent mutations in functional regulatory cis-acting RNA motifs have emerged as biomarkers of disease development and progression, opening avenues for the design of novel therapeutic approaches. This review looks at the progress, challenges and future prospects of targeting cis-acting and trans-acting RNA elements for leukemia diagnosis and treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina A. Elcheva
- Division of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, P.O. Box 850, MC H085, 500 University Drive, Hershey, PA 17033-0850, USA
| | - Vladimir S. Spiegelman
- Division of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, P.O. Box 850, MC H085, 500 University Drive, Hershey, PA 17033-0850, USA
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