title: In situ synthesized BSA capped gold nanoparticles: effective carrier of anticancer drug methotrexate to MCF-7 breast cancer cells.
abstract: The proficiency of MTX loaded BSA capped gold nanoparticles (Au-BSA-MTX) in inhibiting the proliferation of breast cancer cells MCF-7 as compared to the free drug Methotrexate (MTX) is demonstrated based on MTT and Ki-67 proliferation assays. In addition, DNA ladder gel electrophoresis studies, flow cytometry and TUNEL assay confirmed the induction of apoptosis by MTX and Au-BSA-MTX in MCF-7 cells. Notably, Au-BSA-MTX was found to have higher cytotoxicity on MCF-7 cells compared with an equivalent dose of free MTX. The enhanced activity is attributed to the preferential uptake of Au-BSA-MTX particles by MCF-7 cells due to the presence of BSA that acts as a source of nutrient and energy to the rapidly proliferating MCF-7 cells. Moreover, the targeting ability of the drug MTX to the over expressed folate receptors on MCF-7 cells also contributes to the enhanced uptake and activity. Taken together, these results unveil that Au-BSA-MTX could be more effective than free drug for cancer treatment.
authors.affiliation: Physical and Materials Chemistry Division, National Chemical Laboratory, Pune 411008, India.
authors.forename: Priyanka
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Murawala
authors.forename: Amruta
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tirmale
authors.forename: Anjali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shiras
authors.forename: B L V
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Prasad
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D053148:Caspase 3 / Q000378:metabolism; D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000187:drug effects; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000737:chemistry*; D004587:Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; D005260:Female; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen / Q000378:metabolism; D061986:MCF-7 Cells; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000627:therapeutic use* / Q000633:toxicity; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine / Q000737:chemistry*; D013054:Spectrophotometry, Atomic; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D004337:Drug Carriers; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine; D006046:Gold; D053148:Caspase 3; D008727:Methotrexate
keywords: Apoptosis; Bovine serum albumin; Cancer therapy; Cytotoxicity; Dual active agents; Gold nanoparticles