NANOPARTICLES TARGET AND KILL CANCER STEM CELLS THAT DRIVE TUMOR GROWTH
Many cancer patients
survive treatment only to have a recurrence within a few years. Recurrences and
tumor spreading are likely due to cancer stem cells that can be tough to kill
with conventional cancer drugs. But now researchers have designed nanoparticles
that specifically target these hardy cells to deliver a drug. The nanoparticle
treatment, reported in the journal ACS Nano, worked far better than the drug alone in mice.
Anti-cancer drugs can
often shrink tumors but don't kill cancer stem cells (CSCs). Although CSCs
might only make up a small part of a tumor, their resistance to drugs allows
them to persist. They can then cause a tumor to regrow or spread cancerous
cells throughout the body. Xiaoming He and colleagues wanted to develop a
nanoparticle system to overcome these cells' defenses.
The researchers
packaged the anti-cancer drug doxorubicin into nanoparticles coated with
chitosan, a natural polysaccharide that can specifically target CSCs. Once in
the acidic environment of the tumor, the nanoparticles degraded and released
the drug. Tests on tiny, tissue-like clumps of both normal and cancer stem
cells in vitro and on human breast tumors grown in mice showed
the therapy successfully killed CSCs and destroyed tumors. The mice showed no
obvious side effects.
The authors
acknowledge funding from the American Cancer Society and Pelotonia.
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