Novel polysaccharide building hybrid nanoparticles: remodelling TAMs to target ERα-positive breast cancer

Progress in reeducating tumor-associated macrophages in tumor microenvironment

Malignant tumor, one of the most threatening diseases to human health, has been comprehensively treated with surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and targeted therapy, but the prognosis has not always been ideal. In the past decade, immunotherapy has shown increased efficacy in tumor treatment; however, for immunotherapy to achieve its fullest potential, obstacles are to be conquered, among which tumor microenvironment (TME) has been widely investigated. In remodeling the tumor immune microenvironment to inhibit tumor progression, macrophages, as the most abundant innate immune population, play an irreplaceable role in the immune response. Therefore, how to remodel TME and alter the recruitment and polarization status of tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) has been of wide interest. In this context, nanoparticles, photodynamic therapy and other therapeutic approaches capable of affecting macrophage polarization have emerged. In this paper, we categorize and organize the existing means and methods for reprogramming TAM to provide ideas for clinical application of novel tumor-related therapies.

Natural products as glycolytic inhibitors for cervical cancer treatment: A comprehensive review

Cervical cancer, a prevalent gynaecological malignancy, presents challenges in late-stage treatment efficacy. Aerobic glycolysis, a prominent metabolic trait in cervical cancer, emerges as a promising target for novel drug discovery. Natural products, originating from traditional medicine, represent a significant therapeutic avenue and primary source for new drug development. This review explores the regulatory mechanisms of glycolysis in cervical cancer and summarises natural compounds that inhibit aerobic glycolysis as a therapeutic strategy. The glycolytic phenotype in cervical cancer is regulated by classical molecules such as HIF-1, HPV virulence factors and specificity protein 1, which facilitate the Warburg effect in cervical cancer. Various natural products, such as artemisinin, shikonin and kaempferol, exert inhibitory effects by downregulating key glycolytic enzymes through signalling pathways such as PI3K/AKT/HIF-1α and JAK2/STAT3. Despite challenges related to drug metabolism and toxicity, these natural compounds provide novel insights and promising avenues for cervical cancer treatment.

Baicalin enhances the efficacy of 5-Fluorouracil in gastric cancer by promoting ROS-mediated ferroptosis

BACKGROUND

5-Fluorouracil (5-Fu) is one of the most commonly used chemotherapy drugs for gastric cancer (GC). But the increase of drug resistance makes the prognosis of patients worse. Studies have shown that Baicalin can not only inhibit various cancers but also increase the sensitivity of cancers to chemotherapy. However, how Baicalin works in chemotherapeutic resistance of GC are unclear.

METHODS

CCK8 (Cell Counting Kit 8) was used to detect the IC50 (half maximal inhibitory concentration) of Baicalin and 5-Fu. Proliferation, migration, and invasion of GC were tested through colony formation assay and transwell assay. Fluorescent probes detected intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). RNA-seq (RNA sequencing) detected differentially expressed genes and pathways, and qPCR (Quantitative Real-time PCR) tested the expression of ferroptosis-related genes.

RESULTS

The combination of Baicalin and 5-Fu inhibited GC progression and increased intracellular ROS levels. Both the inhibition of malignant phenotype of gastric cancer cells and the generation of intracellular ROS caused by Baicalin could be saved by the inhibitor of ferroptosis-Ferrostatin-1 (Fer-1). Heat map of enriched differentially expressed genes identified by RNA-seq included four ferroptosis-related genes, and subsequent GO (Gene Ontology) analysis suggested an association between the ferroptosis pathway and Baicalin treatment. The changes in expression of ferroptosis-related genes were validated by qPCR, and the result confirmed that the combination of Baicalin and 5-Fu promoted ferroptosis in GC.

CONCLUSIONS

Baicalin inhibits GC and enhances 5-Fu by promoting ROS-related ferroptosis in GC.

Unification of medicines and excipients: The roles of natural excipients for promoting drug delivery

INTRODUCTION

Drug delivery systems (DDSs) formed by natural active compounds be instrumental in developing new green excipients and novel DDS from natural active compounds (NACs). 'Unification of medicines and excipients'(UME), the special inherent nature of the natural active compounds, provides the inspiration and conduction to achieve this goal.

AREAS COVERED

This review summarizes the typical types of NACs from herbal medicine, such as saponins, flavonoids, polysaccharides, etc. that act as excipients and their main application in DDS. The comparison of the drug delivery systems formed by NACs and common materials and the primary formation mechanisms of these NACs are also introduced to provide a deepened understanding of their performance in DDS.

EXPERT OPINION

Many natural bioactive compounds, such as saponins, polysaccharides, etc. have been used in DDS. Diversity of structure and pharmacological effects of NACs turn out the unique advantages in improving the performance of DDSs like targeting ability, adhesion, encapsulation efficiency(EE), etc. and enhancing the bioavailability of loaded drugs.

Dual-drug codelivery nanosystems: An emerging approach for overcoming cancer multidrug resistance

Multidrug resistance (MDR) promotes tumor recurrence and metastasis and heavily reduces anticancer efficiency, which has become a primary reason for the failure of clinical chemotherapy. The mechanisms of MDR are so complex that conventional chemotherapy usually fails to achieve an ideal therapeutic effect and even accelerates the occurrence of MDR. In contrast, the combination of chemotherapy with dual-drug has significant advantages in tumor therapy. A novel dual-drug codelivery nanosystem, which combines dual-drug administration with nanotechnology, can overcome the application limitation of free drugs. Both the characteristics of nanoparticles and the synergistic effect of dual drugs contribute to circumventing various drug-resistant mechanisms in tumor cells. Therefore, developing dual-drug codelivery nanosystems with different multidrug-resistant mechanisms has an important reference value for reversing MDR and enhancing the clinical antitumor effect. In this review, the advantages, principles, and common codelivery nanocarriers in the application of dual-drug codelivery systems are summarized. The molecular mechanisms of MDR and the dual-drug codelivery nanosystems designed based on different mechanisms are mainly introduced. Meanwhile, the development prospects and challenges of codelivery nanosystems are also discussed, which provide guidelines to exploit optimized combined chemotherapy strategies in the future.

Surface-engineered nanoparticles in cancer immune response and immunotherapy: Current status and future prospects

Cancer immunotherapy is a therapeutic strategy to inhibit tumor growth and metastasis by intervening in the immune response process. Strategies applied to cancer immunotherapy mainly include blocking immune checkpoints, adoptive transfer of engineered immune cells, cytokine therapy, cancer vaccines, and oncolytic virus infection. However, many factors, such as off-target side effects, immunosuppressive cell infiltration and/or upregulation of immune checkpoint expression, cancer cell heterogeneity, and lack of antigen presentation, affect the therapeutic effect of immunotherapy on cancer. To improve the efficacy of targeted immunotherapy and reduce off-target effects, over the past two decades, nanoparticle delivery platforms have been increasingly used in tumor immunotherapy. However, nanoparticles are still subject to biological barriers and biodistribution challenges, which limit their overall clinical potential. This has prompted a series of engineered nanoparticles to overcome specific obstacles and transfer the accumulation of payloads to tumor-infiltrating immune cells. In recent years, new techniques and chemical methods have been employed to modify or functionalize the surfaces of nanoparticles. This review discusses the recent progress of surface-engineered nanoparticles in inducing tumor immune responses and immunotherapy, as well as future directions for the development of next-generation nanomedicines.

Nanoparticles as Physically- and Biochemically-Tuned Drug Formulations for Cancers Therapy

Simple Summary

Conventional antitumor drugs have limitations, including poor water solubility and lack of targeting capability, with consequent non-specific distribution, systemic toxicity, and low therapeutic index. Nanotechnology promises to overcome these drawbacks by exploiting the physical properties of diverse nanocarriers that can be linked to moieties with binding selectivity for cancer cells. The use of nanoparticles as therapeutic formulations allows a targeted delivery and a slow, controlled release of the drug(s), making them tunable modules for applications in precision medicine. In addition, nanoparticles are also being developed as cancer vaccines, offering an opportunity to increase both cellular and humoral immunity, thus providing a new weapon to beat cancer.

Abstract

Malignant tumors originate from a combination of genetic alterations, which induce activation of oncogenes and inactivation of oncosuppressor genes, ultimately resulting in uncontrolled growth and neoplastic transformation. Chemotherapy prevents the abnormal proliferation of cancer cells, but it also affects the entire cellular network in the human body with heavy side effects. For this reason, the ultimate aim of cancer therapy remains to selectively kill cancer cells while sparing their normal counterparts. Nanoparticle formulations have the potential to achieve this aim by providing optimized drug delivery to a pathological site with minimal accumulation in healthy tissues. In this review, we will first describe the characteristics of recently developed nanoparticles and how their physical properties and targeting functionalization are exploited depending on their therapeutic payload, route of delivery, and tumor type. Second, we will analyze how nanoparticles can overcome multidrug resistance based on their ability to combine different therapies and targeting moieties within a single formulation. Finally, we will discuss how the implementation of these strategies has led to the generation of nanoparticle-based cancer vaccines as cutting-edge instruments for cancer immunotherapy.

The Fibrillin-1/VEGFR2/STAT2 signaling axis promotes chemoresistance via modulating glycolysis and angiogenesis in ovarian cancer organoids and cells

Background

Chemotherapy resistance is a primary reason of ovarian cancer therapy failure; hence it is important to investigate the underlying mechanisms of chemotherapy resistance and develop novel potential therapeutic targets.

Methods

RNA sequencing of cisplatin‐resistant and ‐sensitive (chemoresistant and chemosensitive, respectively) ovarian cancer organoids was performed, followed by detection of the expression level of fibrillin‐1 (FBN1) in organoids and clinical specimens of ovarian cancer. Subsequently, glucose metabolism, angiogenesis, and chemosensitivity were analyzed in structural glycoprotein FBN1‐knockout cisplatin‐resistant ovarian cancer organoids and cell lines. To gain insights into the specific functions and mechanisms of action of FBN1 in ovarian cancer, immunoprecipitation, silver nitrate staining, mass spectrometry, immunofluorescence, Western blotting, and Fӧrster resonance energy transfer‐fluorescence lifetime imaging analyses were performed, followed by in vivo assays using vertebrate model systems of nude mice and zebrafish.

Results

FBN1 expression was significantly enhanced in cisplatin‐resistant ovarian cancer organoids and tissues, indicating that FBN1 might be a key factor in chemoresistance of ovarian cancer. We also discovered that FBN1 sustained the energy stress and induced angiogenesis in vitro and in vivo, which promoted the cisplatin‐resistance of ovarian cancer. Knockout of FBN1 combined with treatment of the antiangiogenic drug apatinib improved the cisplatin‐sensitivity of ovarian cancer cells. Mechanistically, FBN1 mediated the phosphorylation of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2) at the Tyr1054 residue, which activated its downstream focal adhesion kinase (FAK)/protein kinase B (PKB or AKT) pathway, induced the phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 2 (STAT2) at the tyrosine residue 690 (Tyr690), promoted the nuclear translocation of STAT2, and ultimately altered the expression of genes associated with STAT2‐mediated angiogenesis and glycolysis.

Conclusions

The FBN1/VEGFR2/STAT2 signaling axis may induce chemoresistance of ovarian cancer cells by participating in the process of glycolysis and angiogenesis. The present study suggested a novel FBN1‐targeted therapy and/or combination of FBN1 inhibition and antiangiogenic drug for treating ovarian cancer.