title: In vitro study of the interaction of heregulin-functionalized magnetic-optical nanorods with MCF7 and MDA-MB-231 cells.
abstract: Multifunctional nanoparticles that actively target specific cells are promising tools for cancer diagnosis and therapy. In this article we review the synthesis and surface chemistry of Fe-Au nanorods and their characterization using microscopy. The diameter of the rods used in this study was selected to be 150-200 nm so that they did not enter the cells. The 80 nm-long Au tips of the nanorods were functionalized with heregulin (HRG), and the micron-long Fe portion was coated with a poly(ethylene glycol) monolayer to minimize non-specific interactions. Nanorods functionalized with HRG were found to preferentially bind to MCF7 cells that express high levels of the receptor tyrosine-protein kinase ErbB2/3. Magnetic tweezers measurements were used to characterize the kinetic properties of the bond between the HRG on the rods and ErbB2/3 on the surface of the cells. The strong magnetization of Fe-Au nanorods makes them excellent candidates for in-vitro and in-vivo imaging, and magnetic therapeutic applications targeting cancer cells in circulation.
authors.affiliation: Bionanotechnology Group, Conway Institute and School of Chemistry, UCD, Belfield, Dublin, Ireland. gil.lee@ucd.ie.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lesniak
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kilinc
authors.forename: Suad A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Rashdan
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: von Kriegsheim
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ashall
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zerulla
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kolch
authors.forename: G U
authors.initials: GU
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D007501:Iron / Q000737:chemistry; D056656:Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; D061986:MCF-7 Cells; D060526:Magnetic Fields; D043942:Nanotubes / Q000737:chemistry*; D020890:Neuregulin-1 / Q000737:chemistry*; D052898:Optical Tweezers
chemical_list: D020890:Neuregulin-1; D006046:Gold; D007501:Iron