title: Stem cell-mediated delivery of SPIO-loaded gold nanoparticles for the theranosis of liver injury and hepatocellular carcinoma.
abstract: The treatment of liver injuries or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been hindered by the lack of efficient drug delivery. Even with the help of nanoparticles or other synthetic delivering agents, a large portion of the dose is still sequestered in the reticuloendothelial system. As an alternative, adipose-derived mesenchymal cells (AD-MSCs), which have the capability of homing to the injured liver, can be used as a unique carrier for theranostic agents. Theranostic agents must have the capacity for being non-toxic to host cells during transportation, and for timely activation once they arrive at the injury sites. In this study, we loaded AD-MSCs with superparamagnetic iron oxide-coated gold nanoparticles (SPIO@AuNPs) and tested their effects against liver injury and HCC in cells and in mice. SPIO@AuNP is a non-toxic magnetic resonance (MR)-active contrast agent that can generate heat when irradiated with near-infrared laser. Our results showed that SPIO@AuNPs were successfully transfected into AD-MSCs without compromising either cell viability (P > 0.05) or cell differentiability. In vivo MR imaging and histologic analysis confirmed the active homing of AD-MSCs. Upon laser irradiation, the SPIO@AuNP-loaded AD-MSCs could thermally ablate surrounding HCC tumor cells. SPIO@AuNP-loaded AD-MSCs proved a promising theranostic approach for injured liver and HCC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cancer Systems Imaging, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1555 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Jody
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vykoukal
authors.forename: Mohamed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abdelsalam
authors.forename: Alejandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Recio-Boiles
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Qiao
authors.forename: Burapol
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Singhana
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wallace
authors.forename: Rony
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Avritscher
authors.forename: Marites P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Melancon
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods; D006046:Gold / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D056945:Hep G2 Cells; D006801:Humans; D007501:Iron / Q000378:metabolism; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D010087:Oxides / Q000378:metabolism; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D010087:Oxides; D006046:Gold; D007501:Iron