Chemo-radiation therapy of U87-MG glioblastoma cells using SPIO@AuNP-Cisplatin-Alginate nanocomplex.

Megavoltage radiotherapy and cisplatin-based chemotherapy are the primary glioblastoma treatments. Novel nanoparticles have been designed to reduce adverse effects and boost therapeutic effectiveness. In the present study, we synthesized the SPIO@AuNP-Cisplatin-Alginate (SACA) nanocomplex, composed of a SPIO core, a gold shell, and an alginate coating. SACA was characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). U87-MG human glioblastoma cells and the HGF cell line (a healthy primary gingival fibroblast) were treated in multiple groups by a combination of SACA, cisplatin, and 6 MV X-ray. The MTT assay was used to assess the cytotoxicity of cisplatin and SACA (at various concentrations and for 4 h). Following the treatments, apoptosis and cell viability were evaluated in each treatment group using flow cytometry and the MTT assay, respectively. The findings demonstrated that the combination of SACA and 6 MV X-rays (at the doses of 2 and 4 Gy) drastically decreased the viability of U87MG cells, whereas the viability of HGF cells remained unchanged. Moreover, U87MG cells treated with SACA in combination with radiation exhibited a significant increase in apoptosis, demonstrating that this nanocomplex effectively boosted the radiosensitivity of cancer cells. Even though additional in vivo studies are needed, these findings suggest that SACA might be used as a radiosensitizer nanoparticle in the therapy of brain tumors.

A 2D nanotheranostic platform based on graphene oxide and phase-change materials for bimodal CT/MR imaging, NIR-activated drug release, and synergistic thermo-chemotherapy.

Recent years have seen considerable progress in the development of nanomedicine by the advent of 2D nanomaterials serving as ideal platforms to integrate multiple theranostic functions. We synthesized multifunctional stimuli-responsive 2D-based smart nanocomposites (NCs), comprising gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and superparamagnetic iron oxides (SPIOs) scaffolded within graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets, coated with doxorubicin (DOX)-loaded 1-tetradecanol (TD), and further modified with an alginate (Alg) polymer. TD is a phase-change material (PCM) that confines DOX molecules to the GO surface and melts when the temperature exceeds its melting point (Tm=39 °C), causing the PCM to release its drug payload. By virtue of their strong near-infrared (NIR) light absorption and high photothermal conversion efficiency, GO nanosheets may enable photothermal therapy (PTT) and activate a phase change to trigger DOX release. Upon NIR irradiation of NCs, a synergistic thermo-chemotherapeutic effect can be obtained by GO-mediated PTT, resulting an accelerated and controllable drug release through the PCM mechanism. The biodistribution of these NCs could also be imaged with computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in vitro and in vivo. Hence, this multifunctional nanotheranostic platform based on 2D nanomaterials appears a promising candidate for multimodal image-guided cancer therapy.

Fe3O4@Au core-shell hybrid nanocomposite for MRI-guided magnetic targeted photo-chemotherapy.

The combination of multiple therapeutic and diagnostic functions is fast becoming a key feature in the area of clinical oncology. The advent of nanotechnology promises multifunctional nanoplatforms with the potential to deliver multiple therapeutics while providing diagnostic information simultaneously. In this study, novel iron oxide-gold core-shell hybrid nanocomposites (Fe3O4@Au HNCs) coated with alginate hydrogel carrying doxorubicin (DOX) were constructed for targeted photo-chemotherapy and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The magnetic core enables the HNCs to be detected through MRI and targeted towards the tumor using an external magnetic field, a method known as magnetic drug targeting (MDT). The Au shell could respond to light in the near-infrared (NIR) region, generating a localized heating for photothermal therapy (PTT) of the tumor. The cytotoxicity assay showed that the treatment of CT26 colon cancer cells with the DOX-loaded HNCs followed by laser irradiation induced a significantly higher cell death as opposed to PTT and chemotherapy alone. The in vivo MRI study proved MDT to be an effective strategy for targeting the HNCs to the tumor, thereby enhancing their intratumoral concentration. The antitumor study revealed that the HNCs can successfully combine chemotherapy and PTT, resulting in superior therapeutic outcome. Moreover, the use of MDT following the injection of HNCs caused a more extensive tumor shrinkage as compared to non-targeted group. Therefore, the as-prepared HNCs could be a promising nanoplatform for image-guided targeted combination therapy of cancer.