title: Aqueous synthesized quantum dots interfere with the NF-κB pathway and confer anti-tumor, anti-viral and anti-inflammatory effects.
abstract: The NF-κB pathway plays crucial roles in inflammatory responses and cell survival. Aberrant constitutive NF-κB activation is associated with various human diseases including cancer and inflammatory and auto-immune diseases. Consequently, it is highly desirable to develop new kinds of inhibitors, which are highly efficacious for blocking the NF-κB pathway. In this study, by using a typical kind of aqueous synthesized quantum dots (QDs), i.e., CdTe QDs, as a model, we for the first time demonstrated that the QDs could selectively affect the cellular nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway, but do not affect the AKT or ERK pathways. Typically, the QDs efficiently inhibited the activation of IKKα and IKKβ, resulting in the suppression of both the canonical and the non-canonical NF-κB signaling pathways. Inhibition of NF-κB by QDs downregulates anti-apoptotic genes and promotes apoptosis in cancer cells. The QDs induced NF-κB inhibition and cytotoxicity could be blocked by N-acetylcysteine due to the reduced cellular uptake of QDs. Importantly, inhibition of NF-κB by QDs displayed promising effects against the viral replication and in vivo bacterial endotoxin-induced inflammatory responses. These data suggest the QDs as potent inhibitors of the NF-κB signaling pathway, both in vitro and in vivo. Our findings highlight the potential of using QDs in the development of anti-cancer, anti-viral, and anti-inflammatory approaches, and also facilitate better understanding of QDs-related cellular behavior under the molecular level.
authors.affiliation: Cyrus Tang Hematology Center and Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Zhilin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Cyrus Tang Hematology Center and Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Yiling
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.affiliation: Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoyuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: Cyrus Tang Hematology Center and Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Cyrus Tang Hematology Center and Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Chengkui
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Cyrus Tang Hematology Center and Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Jinying
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
authors.forename: Yuanyuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: Jiangsu Institute of Hematology (JIH), Key Laboratory of Thrombosis and Hemostasis of Ministry of Health, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China.
authors.forename: Suning
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China. Electronic address: yaohe@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Yao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Cyrus Tang Hematology Center and Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital, and Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China. Electronic address: hesudan@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Sudan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: He
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena / Q000187:drug effects; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D006801:Humans; D008422:Materials Testing; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D009374:Neoplasms, Experimental / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology; D045663:Quantum Dots / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry; D000067996:RAW 264.7 Cells; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology*; D014780:Viruses / Q000187:drug effects; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D000998:Antiviral Agents; D016328:NF-kappa B; D014867:Water
keywords: Cancer; IKK; Inflammation; Inhibitor; NF-κB; Quantum dots