PLGA-PEG-COOH from PolySciTech used in development of nanoparticle therapy for breast cancer.

Targeting cancer at higher rates than normal tissue is the goal of drug delivery in the cancer sector so as to maximize efficacy with minimal side-effects. Recently, researchers from China Pharmaceutical University Used PLGA-PEG-COOH (AI034) from PolySciTech (www.polyscitech.com) as part of development of aptamer-targeted nanoparticles for cancer delivery. This research holds promise for the development of advanced breast cancer treatment options. Read more: Duan, Tao, Zhuobin Xu, Fumou Sun, Yang Wang, Juan Zhang, Chen Luo, and Min Wang. "HPA aptamer functionalized paclitaxel-loaded PLGA nanoparticles for enhanced anticancer therapy through targeted effects and microenvironment modulation." Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy 117 (2019): 109121. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332219310285

“Highlights: Confirming HPA as recognized molecular targets for TNBC therapy. A HPA aptamer-guided anticancer drug delivery system was developed with MDA-MB-231 as a model in vitro and vivo. The system exhibited enhanced anti-invasive and anti-angiogenesis activity through HPA-related signaling pathways. Numerous cancers overexpress HPA and are sensitive to PTX, that make the system as a broad-spectrum anti-cancer agent. Abstract: Breast cancer is a fairly common cancer with high mortality in women worldwide. Targeted nano-drug delivery system for breast cancer treatment has achieved encouraging results, because of increased drug concentration at the tumor site, thereby improving biocompatibility and blood half-life while reducing chemoresistance. However, the absence of available target on cancer cells is one of the major obstacles for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Increasing studies have shown that heparanase (HPA) is highly expressed in many cancers, including TNBC. Thus paclitaxel(PTX) -encapsulated PEGylated PLGA nanoparticles were developed and further surface-functionalized with the HPA aptamers (Apt(S1.5)-PTX-NP). Moreover, targeting and cytotoxicity of Apt(S1.5)-PTX-NP to TNBC cells were evaluated with MDA-MB-231 as a model. These nanoparticles bonded to the HPA overexpressed on the surface of TNBC cells and were taken up by these cells, resulting in remarkably enhanced cellular toxicity compared with non-targeted PTX-NP that lack the HPA aptamer (P < 0.01). Furthermore, Apt(S1.5)-PTX-NP significantly exhibited enhanced anti-invasive and superior anti-angiogenesis activity compared with those of other experiment groups at low administration dosage. The Apt(S1.5)-PTX-NP demonstrated the most dramatic efficacy with the final mean tumor sizes of 157.30 ± 41.09 mm3 (mean ± SD; n = 10) in vivo treatment. Thus, the present study indicated that HPA is a promising target for drug delivery to TNBC cells, and nanoparticle-HPA-aptamer bioconjugates can provide new insights for TNBC treatment.”

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