Porous PLGA microspheres with recruited ions and doxorubicin for triple-combination therapy of larger hepatocellular carcinoma

Rational Nanomedicine Design Enhances Clinically Physical Treatment-Inspired or Combined Immunotherapy

Independent of tumor type and non-invasive or minimally-invasive feature, current physical treatments including ultrasound therapy, microwave ablation (MWA), and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) are widely used as the local treatment methods in clinics for directly killing tumors and activating systematic immune responses. However, the activated immune responses are inadequate and incompetent for tumor recession, and the incomplete thermal ablation even aggravates the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (ITM), resulting in the intractable tumor recurrence and metastasis. Intriguingly, nanomedicine provides a powerful platform as they can elevate energy utilization efficiency and augment oncolytic effects for mitigating ITM and potentiating the systematic immune responses. Especially after combining with clinical immunotherapy, the anti-tumor killing effect by activating or enhancing the human anti-tumor immune system is reached, enabling the effective prevention against tumor recurrence and metastasis. This review systematically introduces the cutting-edge progress and direction of nanobiotechnologies and their corresponding nanomaterials. Moreover, the enhanced physical treatment efficiency against tumor progression, relapse, and metastasis via activating or potentiating the autologous immunity or combining with exogenous immunotherapeutic agents is exemplified, and their rationales are analyzed. This review offers general guidance or directions to enhance clinical physical treatment from the perspectives of immunity activation or magnification.

Recent advances and applications of microspheres and nanoparticles in transarterial chemoembolization for hepatocellular carcinoma

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is a recommended treatment for patients suffering from intermediate and advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). As compared to the conventional TACE, drug-eluting bead TACE demonstrates several advantages in terms of survival, treatment response, and adverse effects. The selection of embolic agents is critical to the success of TACE. Many studies have been performed on the modification of the structure, size, homogeneity, biocompatibility, and biodegradability of embolic agents. Continuing efforts are focused on efficient loading of versatile chemotherapeutics, controlled sizes for sufficient occlusion, real-time detection intra- and post-procedure, and multimodality imaging-guided precise treatment. Here, we summarize recent advances and applications of microspheres and nanoparticles in TACE for HCC. This article is categorized under: Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease.

Nano-Particulated Erlotinib Compound System in Alleviation of Lung Cancer

To produce an effective nanoparticle-loaded delivery system for the tumor drug erlotinib for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) therapy, we loaded poly(lactic co glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles with erlotinib and used them to transport the drug to a target area. NCI-H1650 cells were cultured to test the permeability, efficiency, and anti-tumor capacity of PLGA and polyethyleneimine (PEI) drug delivery systems, and an NSCLC mouse model was prepared to further test the anti-tumor efficiency of PLGA. In tests using NCI-H1650 cells, we found that PLGA could effectively transport erlotinib into tumor cells, and release the loaded drug instantly. The infiltration efficiency was significantly higher than that of the PEI delivery system, and the same results were obtained in animal tests. PLGA-erlotinib could promote apoptosis and inhibit the migration of tumor cells more effectively than PEI-erlotinib. In the NSCLC mouse model, PLGA could more effectively reduce the tumor volume and the extent of tumor markers than the PEI delivery system. Immune function was also better rescued with the use of the PLGA system. We concluded that PLGA-erlotinib may be a good choice for lung cancer therapy in the future.

Mitochondria-targeting nanoparticles for enhanced microwave ablation of cancer

Although microwave ablation is widely used in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma, it is only recommended for the therapy of cancer with a diameter of 3 cm or less because of the limited heat transmission radius. Mitochondria play an important role in the apoptotic events of tumor cells. Here, we developed mitochondria-targeting zirconia (ZrO2) complex nanoparticles (MZCNs) as nanoagents for efficient cancer therapy by microwave ablation. The MZCNs are composed of ZrO2 nanoparticles encapsulating the microwave-sensitive ionic liquid (IL) and co-decorated with the mitochondria-targeting molecule of triphenylphosphonium (TPP), and the tumor cell-targeting peptide iRGD. The cell experiment results reveal that the amount of MZCNs accumulated in the tumor is obviously increased by the synergistically targeted delivery of TPP and iRGD peptide after administration by intravenous injection. Besides, the in vitro experiments demonstrate that MZCNs are distributed preferentially in the mitochondria with the assistance of TPP molecules. More importantly, the in vivo experiments in mice administered with MZCNs show that the effective area with a temperature above 42 °C was about 2.8-fold larger than that of the controls due to the targeting effect and better microwave sensitivity of the MZCNs. As such, the cancer in mice can be eradicated without recurrence, demonstrating the MZCNs as promising nanoagents for efficient cancer therapy by microwave ablation.