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Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most lethal cancers largely due to the inefficient delivery of therapeutics. Nanomaterials have been extensively investigated as drug delivery platforms, showing improved drug pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics. However, their applications in pancreatic cancer have not yet been successful due to limited tumor delivery caused by dense tumor stroma and distorted tumor vasculatures. Meanwhile, smaller-sized nanomaterials have shown improved tumor delivery and retention in various tumors, including pancreatic tumors, suggesting their potential in enhancing drug delivery. An ultrafine iron oxide nanoparticle (uIONP) was used to encapsulate 7-ethyl-10-hydroxyl camptothecin (SN38), the water-insoluble active metabolite of pancreatic cancer chemotherapy drug irinotecan. Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) was conjugated to uIONP as a ligand for targeting pancreatic cancer cells overexpressing IGF-1 receptor (IGF1R). The SN38 loading and release profile were characterized. The pancreatic cancer cell targeting using IGF1-uIONP/SN38 and subsequently induced cell apoptosis were also investigated. IGF1-uIONP/SN38 demonstrated a stable drug loading in physiological pH with the loading efficiency of 68.2 ± 3.5% (SN38/Fe, wt%) and < 7% release for 24 h. In tumor-interstitial- and lysosomal-mimicking pH (6.5 and 5.5), 52.2 and 91.3% of encapsulated SN38 were released over 24 h. The IGF1-uIONP/SN38 exhibited specific receptor-mediated cell targeting and cytotoxicity Ato MiaPaCa-2 and Panc02 pancreatic cancer cells with IC50 of 11.8 ± 2.3 and 20.8 ± 3.5 nM, respectively, but not to HEK293 human embryonic kidney cells. IGF1-uIONP significantly improved the targeted SN38 delivery to pancreatic cancer cells, holding the potential for in vivo theranostic applications., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Occupational exposure to indium oxide and indium containing particles has been associated with the development of severe lung diseases called "indium lung." According to the survey of occupational hygiene, indium oxide nanoparticles have been identified in the workplaces and the lungs of workers. To date, the potential mechanism of the pneumotoxicity has been poorly understood and no effective therapies are available against "indium lung." Our present study reported that the exposure of indium oxide nanoparticles damaged lung epithelial cells and alveolar macrophages and induced pulmonary alveolar proteinosis and inflammation in rats. In the 8-week post-exposure period, the indium oxide nanoparticles still mostly accumulated in the lungs and then persistently release indium ions in two months after exposure. In vitro , the epithelial cells show the greater potential for release of indium ions from indium oxide nanoparticles compared with the macrophages. EDTA-2Na, a metal chelating agent expected to remove the indium ions, was found to significantly reduced the cytotoxicity of indium oxide nanoparticles. Herein, the pneumotoxicity may be attributed to the slow and incremental release of indium ions from indium oxide nanoparticles primary dissolved by epithelial cells and macrophages, at least partially. The study may provide some insights to the pathogenicity mechanisms of "indium lung" and some clues against the health hazards of occupational inhaled indium oxide nanoparticles at the workplaces.

The rapid development and advances in nanomaterials and nanotechnology in the past two decades have made profound impact in our approaches to individualized disease diagnosis and treatment. Nanomaterials, mostly in the range of 10-200 nm, developed for biomedical applications provide a wide range of platforms for building and engineering functionalized structures, devices, or systems to fulfill the specific diagnostic and therapeutic needs. Driven by achieving the ultimate goal of clinical translation, sub-5 nm nano-constructs, in particular inorganic nanoparticles such as gold, silver, silica, and iron oxide nanoparticles, have been developed in recent years to improve the biocompatibility, delivery and pharmacokinetics of imaging probes and drug delivery systems, as well as in vivo theranostic applications. The emerging studies have provided new findings that demonstrated the unique size-dependent physical properties, physiological behaviors and biological functions of the nanomaterials in the range of the sub-5 nm scale, including renal clearance, novel imaging contrast, and tissue distribution. This advanced review attempts to introduce the new strategies of rational design for engineering nanoparticles with the core sizes under 5 nm in consideration of the clinical and translational requirements. We will provide readers the update on recent discoveries of chemical, physical, and biological properties of some biocompatible sub-5 nm nanomaterials as well as their demonstrated imaging and theranostic applications, followed by sharing our perspectives on the future development of this class of nanomaterials. This article is categorized under: Diagnostic Tools > in vivo Nanodiagnostics and Imaging Implantable Materials and Surgical Technologies > Nanomaterials and Implants., (© 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Understanding the effects of immune responses on targeted delivery of nanoparticles is important for clinical translations of new cancer imaging and therapeutic nanoparticles. In this study, we found that repeated administrations of magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) conjugated with mouse or human derived targeting ligands induced high levels of ligand specific antibody responses in normal and tumor bearing mice while injections of unconjugated mouse ligands were weakly immunogenic and induced a very low level of antibody response in mice. Mice that received intravenous injections of targeted and polyethylene glycol (PEG)-coated IONPs further increased the ligand specific antibody production due to differential uptake of PEG-coated nanoparticles by macrophages and dendritic cells. However, the production of ligand specific antibodies was markedly inhibited following systemic delivery of theranostic nanoparticles carrying a chemotherapy drug, doxorubicin. Targeted imaging and histological analysis revealed that lack of the ligand specific antibodies led to an increase in intratumoral delivery of targeted nanoparticles. Results of this study support the potential of further development of targeted theranostic nanoparticles for the treatment of human cancers.

Owing to the convenience and minimal invasiveness, phototherapy, including photodynamic therapy (PDT) and photothermal therapy (PTT), is emerging as a powerful technique for cancer treatment. To date, however, few examples of combination PDT and PTT have been reported. Phthalocyanine (Pc) is a class of traditional photosensitizer for PDT, but its bioapplication is limited by high hydrophobicity. In this present study, hollow silica nanospheres (HSNs) were employed to endow the hydrophobic phthalocyanine with water-dispersity, and the as-prepared hollow silica nanoparticles loaded with hydrophobic phthalocyanine (Pc@HSNs) exhibits highly efficient dual PDT and PTT effects. In vitro and in vivo experimental results clearly indicated that the dual phototherapeutic effect of Pc@HSNs can kill cancer cells or eradicate tumor tissues. This multifunctional nanomedicine may be useful for PTT/PDT treatment of cancer., (© 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Different from traditional methods for preparing pH-switchable Pickering emulsifiers, a simple and straightforward approach is established on the basis of a reversible process between in situ formation and dissolution of Mg(OH)(2) nanoparticles (MHp). It was found that when pH value was above 9.5, emulsions of liquid paraffin-in-water can be stabilized by the resulting surface-active particles. Below this pH, emulsions demulsify, resulting in a reversible Pickering emulsifier. Based on the strongly pH-dependent precipitation of metal hydroxide nanoparticles, this procedure offers a new way to design pH-switchable emulsifiers without aid of any other organic matters., (Copyright © 2010. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

The magnetic nanoparticle has emerged as a potential multifunctional clinical tool that can provide cancer cell detection by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast enhancement as well as targeted cancer cell therapy. A major barrier in the use of nanotechnology for brain tumor applications is the difficulty in delivering nanoparticles to intracranial tumors. Iron oxide nanoparticles (IONP; 10 nm in core size) conjugated to a purified antibody that selectively binds to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) deletion mutant (EGFRvIII) present on human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cells were used for therapeutic targeting and MRI contrast enhancement of experimental glioblastoma, both in vitro and in vivo, after convection-enhanced delivery (CED). A significant decrease in glioblastoma cell survival was observed after nanoparticle treatment and no toxicity was observed with treatment of human astrocytes (P < 0.001). Lower EGFR phosphorylation was found in glioblastoma cells after EGFRvIIIAb-IONP treatment. Apoptosis was determined to be the mode of cell death after treatment of GBM cells and glioblastoma stem cell-containing neurospheres with EGFRvIIIAb-IONPs. MRI-guided CED of EGFRvIIIAb-IONPs allowed for the initial distribution of magnetic nanoparticles within or adjacent to intracranial human xenograft tumors and continued dispersion days later. A significant increase in animal survival was found after CED of magnetic nanoparticles (P < 0.01) in mice implanted with highly tumorigenic glioblastoma xenografts (U87DeltaEGFRvIII). IONPs conjugated to an antibody specific to the EGFRvIII deletion mutant constitutively expressed by human glioblastoma tumors can provide selective MRI contrast enhancement of tumor cells and targeted therapy of infiltrative glioblastoma cells after CED.

One of the major limitations impeding the sensitivity and specificity of biomarker targeted nanoparticles is non-specific binding by biomolecules and uptake by the reticuloendothelial system (RES). We report the development of an antibiofouling polysiloxane containing amphiphilic diblock copolymer, poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(gamma-methacryloxypropyl trimethoxysilane) (PEO-b-PgammaMPS), for coating and functionalizing high quality hydrophobic nanocrystals such as iron oxide nanoparticles and quantum dots. These PEO-b-PgammaMPS-coated nanocrystals were colloidally stable in biological medium and showed low non-specific binding by macromolecules after incubation with 100% fetal bovine serum. Both in vitro experiments with macrophages and in vivo biodistribution studies in mice revealed that PEO-b-PgammaMPS copolymer-coated nanocrystals have an antibiofouling effect that reduces non-specific cell and RES uptake. Surface functionalization with amine groups was accomplished through co-crosslinking the polysiloxane coating layer and (3-Aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane in aqueous solution. Tumor integrin alpha(v)beta(3) targeting peptide cyclo-RGD ligands were conjugated on the nanoparticles through a heterobifunctional linker. The resulting integrin alpha(v)beta(3) targeting nanoparticle conjugates showed improved cancer cell targeting with a stronger affinity to U87MG glioma cells, which have a high expression of alpha(v)beta(3) integrins, but minimal binding to MCF-7 breast cancer cells with low expression of alpha(v)beta(3) integrins., (Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background & Aims: Identification of a ligand/receptor system that enables functionalized nanoparticles to efficiently target pancreatic cancer holds great promise for the development of novel approaches for the detection and treatment of pancreatic cancer. Urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR), a cellular receptor that is highly expressed in pancreatic cancer and tumor stromal cells, is an excellent surface molecule for receptor-targeted imaging of pancreatic cancer using multifunctional nanoparticles., Methods: The uPAR-targeted dual-modality molecular imaging nanoparticle probe is designed and prepared by conjugating a near-infrared dye-labeled amino-terminal fragment of the receptor binding domain of urokinase plasminogen activator to the surface of functionalized magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles., Results: We have shown that the systemic delivery of uPAR-targeted nanoparticles leads to their selective accumulation within tumors of orthotopically xenografted human pancreatic cancer in nude mice. The uPAR-targeted nanoparticle probe binds to and is subsequently internalized by uPAR-expressing tumor cells and tumor-associated stromal cells, which facilitates the intratumoral distribution of the nanoparticles and increases the amount and retention of the nanoparticles in a tumor mass. Imaging properties of the nanoparticles enable in vivo optical and magnetic resonance imaging of uPAR-elevated pancreatic cancer lesions., Conclusions: Targeting uPAR using biodegradable multifunctional nanoparticles allows for the selective delivery of the nanoparticles into primary and metastatic pancreatic cancer lesions. This novel receptor-targeted nanoparticle is a potential molecular imaging agent for the detection of pancreatic cancer.

The rapid development and advances in nanomaterials and nanotechnology in the past two decades have made profound impact in our approaches to individualized disease diagnosis and treatment. Nanomaterials, mostly in the range of 10–200 nm, developed for biomedical applications provide a wide range of platforms for building and engineering functionalized structures, devices, or systems to fulfill the specific diagnostic and therapeutic needs. Driven by achieving the ultimate goal of clinical translation, sub‐5 nm nano‐constructs, in particular inorganic nanoparticles such as gold, silver, silica, and iron oxide nanoparticles, have been developed in recent years to improve the biocompatibility, delivery and pharmacokinetics of imaging probes and drug delivery systems, as well as in vivo theranostic applications. The emerging studies have provided new findings that demonstrated the unique size‐dependent physical properties, physiological behaviors and biological functions of the nanomaterials in the range of the sub‐5 nm scale, including renal clearance, novel imaging contrast, and tissue distribution. This advanced review attempts to introduce the new strategies of rational design for engineering nanoparticles with the core sizes under 5 nm in consideration of the clinical and translational requirements. We will provide readers the update on recent discoveries of chemical, physical, and biological properties of some biocompatible sub‐5 nm nanomaterials as well as their demonstrated imaging and theranostic applications, followed by sharing our perspectives on the future development of this class of nanomaterials. This article is categorized under:Diagnostic Tools > in vivo Nanodiagnostics and ImagingImplantable Materials and Surgical Technologies > Nanomaterials and Implants [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to reliably detect sentinel lymph nodes for sentinel lymph node biopsy and lymphadenectomy is important in clinical management of patients with metastatic cancers. However, the traditional sentinel lymph node mapping with visible dyes is limited by the penetration depth of light and fast clearance of the dyes. On the other hand, sentinel lymph node mapping with radionucleotide technique has intrinsically low spatial resolution and does not provide anatomic details in the sentinel lymph node mapping procedure. This work reports the development of a dual modality imaging probe with magnetic resonance and near infrared imaging capabilities for sentinel lymph node mapping using magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (10 nm core size) conjugated with a near infrared molecule with emission at 830 nm. Accumulation of magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in sentinel lymph nodes leads to strong T2 weighted magnetic resonance imaging contrast that can be potentially used for preoperative localization of sentinel lymph nodes, while conjugated near infrared molecules provide optical imaging tracking of lymph nodes with a high signal to background ratio. The new magnetic nanoparticle based dual imaging probe exhibits a significant longer lymph node retention time. Near infrared signals from nanoparticle conjugated near infrared dyes last up to 60 min in sentinel lymph node compared to that of 25 min for the free near infrared dyes in a mouse model. Furthermore, axillary lymph nodes, in addition to sentinel lymph nodes, can be also visualized with this probe, given its slow clearance and sufficient sensitivity. Therefore, this new dual modality imaging probe with the tissue penetration and sensitive detection of sentinel lymph nodes can be applied for preoperative survey of lymph nodes with magnetic resonance imaging and allows intraoperative sentinel lymph node mapping using near infrared optical devices. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We report a novel drug delivery system composed of layer-by-layer (LBL) milk protein casein (CN) coated iron oxide nanoparticles. Doxorubicin (DOX) and indocyanine green (ICG) were selected as model drug molecules, which were incorporated into the inner polymeric layer, and subsequently coated with casein. The resulting casein coated iron oxide nanoparticles (CN-DOX/ICG-IO) were stable in the acidic gastric condition with the presence of gastric protease. On the other hand, the loaded drugs were released when the casein outer layer was gradually degraded by the intestinal protease in the simulated intestine condition. Such unique properties enable maintenance of the bioactivity of the drugs and thus enhance the drug delivery efficiency. Ex vivo experiments showed that the LBL CN-DOX-IO improved the translocation of DOX across microvilli and its absorption in the small intestine sacs. In vivo imaging of mice that were orally administered with these LBL CN-ICG-IO nanostructures further confirmed that the reported drug delivery vehicles could pass the stomach without significant degradation, and then accumulated in the small intestine. In addition, the magnetic iron oxide nanoparticle core offered an MRI contrast enhancing capability for in vivo imaging guided drug delivery. Therefore, the reported LBL CN-DOX/ICG-IO is a promising oral drug delivery nanoplatform, especially for drugs that are poorly soluble in water or degradable in the gastric environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Different from traditional methods for preparing pH-switchable Pickering emulsifiers, a simple and straightforward approach is established on the basis of a reversible process between in situ formation and dissolution of Mg(OH)2 nanoparticles (MHp). It was found that when pH value was above 9.5, emulsions of liquid paraffin-in-water can be stabilized by the resulting surface-active particles. Below this pH, emulsions demulsify, resulting in a reversible Pickering emulsifier. Based on the strongly pH-dependent precipitation of metal hydroxide nanoparticles, this procedure offers a new way to design pH-switchable emulsifiers without aid of any other organic matters. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A high-temperature solution phase hydrolysis has been developed for the synthesis of amine-functionalized Fe3O4 nanostructures. The concentrations of the reagents and the reaction time have great influence on the morphologies of the products. Increasing the amounts of poly (propylene glycol) bis (2-aminopropyl ether) transformed the product morphology from hollow nanostructures to magnetite nanoparticles. Single-crystal solid spherical aggregates, hollow spheres, loose nanoclusters and polyhedral-like magnetite particles can be selectively synthesized by varying the synthesis parameters, including the reaction time or the weight ratio of iron precursors to polyetheramine. The morphological transformation could be attributed to the cooperation of oriented aggregation and Ostwald ripening mechanisms. By using poly (propylene glycol) bis (2-aminopropyl ether) as the capping agent, the amine-functionalized nanoparticles show high water dispersibility and thermo-responsive. In addition, the Pickering emulsion stabilized by amine-functionalized nanoparticles was fabricated. One of the most promising applications of the as-prepared single-crystal hollow structures is as support materials for biological testing, catalysis and targeted drug delivery. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]