title: Enhancing the efficiency of bortezomib conjugated to pegylated gold nanoparticles: an in vitro study on human pancreatic cancer cells and adenocarcinoma human lung alveolar basal epithelial cells.
abstract: Gold nanoparticles have become promising vectors for cancer diagnosis and treatment. The present study investigates the effect of bortezomib (BTZ), a proteasome inhibitor, conjugated with pegylated gold nanoparticles (PEGAuNPs) in pancreatic and lung cancer cells.
  
  
  
  Synthesized gold nanoparticles (PEGAuNPs) were conjugated with bortezomib antitumor drug. We investigated the cytotoxicity induced by BTZ conjugated with functionalized gold nanoparticles in vitro, in the human pancreatic (S2-013) and lung (A549) cancer cell lines.
  
  
  
  We found an efficient of conjugation of BTZ with PEGAuNPs. In vitro assays showed that after 72 h' incubation with PEGAuNPs-BTZ cancer cells revealed alterations in morphology; also for S2-013 and A549 cancer cells, the IC50 value of free BTZ is respectively 1.5 and 4.3 times higher than the IC50 value of PEGAuNPs-BTZ. Furthermore, for TERT-HPNE, the IC50 value is around 63 times lower for free BTZ than the conjugated nanovehicle. Cell growth inhibition results showed a remarkable enhancement in the effect of BTZ when conjugated with AuNPs.
  
  
  
  Our findings showed that conjugation with PEGAuNPs enhance the BTZ growth-inhibition effect on human cancer cells (S2-013 and A549) and decreases its toxicity against normal cells (TERT-HPNE).
authors.affiliation: a LEPABE, Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering , University of Porto , Porto , Portugal.
authors.forename: Sílvia Castro
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Coelho
authors.affiliation: b Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde , Universidade do Porto , Porto , Portugal.|c Expression Regulation in Cancer Group , IPATIMUP , Porto , Portugal.
authors.forename: Gabriela M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Almeida
authors.affiliation: b Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde , Universidade do Porto , Porto , Portugal.|d Public Awareness of Cancer Unit , IPATIMUP , Porto , Portugal.|e Faculty of Medicine , University of Porto , Porto , Portugal.|f Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Eppley Institute , University of Nebraska Medical Center , Omaha , NE , USA.
authors.forename: Filipe
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Santos-Silva
authors.affiliation: a LEPABE, Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering , University of Porto , Porto , Portugal.
authors.forename: Maria Carmo
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: a LEPABE, Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering , University of Porto , Porto , Portugal.
authors.forename: Manuel A N
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Coelho
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000077192:Adenocarcinoma of Lung; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000069286:Bortezomib / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000187:drug effects; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D053758:Nanoparticles; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D061988:Proteasome Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D061988:Proteasome Inhibitors; D000069286:Bortezomib; D006046:Gold
keywords: Bortezomib; gold nanoparticles; lung cancer; pancreatic cancer