Near-Infrared-Driven Photoablation of Lung Cancer Tumors Utilizing Biomimetic Platelet-Polyethyleneimine-Polypyrrole Drug-Free Nanoparticles
Posted by Adam Awdish on
Single Donor Human Platelets ACD from Innovative Research was used in the following study:
Burnouf, T.; Jheng, P-R.; Chen, Y-H.; Rethi, L.; Rethi, L.; Lu, L-S.; Ho, Y-C.; Chuang, E-Y.
Materials & Design
February 20, 2022
In the field of cancer treatment, intraperitoneal (IP) administration can be used to deliver drugs to a patient, however, it doesn’t distinguish between tumors and healthy tissues, opening the potential for harm to healthy organs during treatment. One of several newer approaches to cancer treatment, photothermal therapy (PTT), is currently a topic of interest, as nanoparticles involved in the process are quickly targeted by the immune system and removed from the body after delivering the drug they were carrying to the desired destination. Regarding PTT, photothermal nanoparticles (NPs) are of particular interest because they have distinct surface plasmon resonance peak levels which fall within the near-infrared (NIR) range. With all of this in mind, scientists are experimenting with novel ways to utilize PTT and NPs to improve the tumor-targeting ability of therapeutic drugs as well as lower unwanted immune cell phagocytosis.
One material that is of particular interest to accomplish this goal is polypyrrole (PPY), a flexible polymer that possesses excellent photothermal hyperthermic characteristics when exposed to NIR radiation. Due to it being difficult to process and displaying extremely hydrophobic characteristics, however, research into using PPY in this fashion has been limited.
In an attempt to overcome these obstacles, researchers in this study developed a formulation that stabilizes PPY during polymerization. This formulation includes polyethyleneimine (PEI), a combination they call PEI-PPY NPs, which can coat cell membranes and help the cell to mimic extracellular vesicles and “conceal” them from innate immune cells to assist them in targeting the desired site of action. The PEI-PPY NPs aim to improve the medication delivery of therapeutic drugs by improving the cell surface’s ability to interact with platelets (PLTs) via a “Trojan Horse” approach; The PLTs would bind to the surface of the drug delivering cells, effectively hiding it from immune cells and helping it to find its target receptor. This approach to improving the efficacy of drug administration for cancer treatment has not been explored yet and may prove useful in making safer, more effective therapeutics.
Related products available from Innovative Research also include:
Single Donor Human Whole Blood