Metal, Metalloid, and Oxide Nanoparticles for Therapeutic and Diagnostic Oncology

Abstract

Nanoparticles have comprehensively affected various sights of human life. Through the wide range of claims about nanosized particles and their functions, biomedical applications are of much interest among health care researchers due to the nanoparticles' potential for use in the process of disease diagnosis, control and treatment. In this regard, inorganic nanoparticles, which have high potential in diagnostic and therapeutic systems, have recently received much attention in oncology. Although inorganic nanoparticles initially seemed an appropriate tool for cancer imaging and diagnosis, their ability to attack cancerous cells as anticancer drugs or carriers in other drugs has also demonstrated promising results. The present review primarily provides a brief survey of various studies in which metal nanoparticles such as gold, silver, iron oxide, and metalloid nanoparticles viz. tellurium and bismuth were exploited for therapeutic or diagnostic purposes in oncology. Then the application of selenium nanoparticles as a therapeutic agent against cancer in in vitro and in vivo studies is reviewed in detail. Although inorganic nanoparticles seem to be useful tools for cancer imaging and diagnosis, their potential for attacking cancerous cells as anticancer substances or even carriers for anticancer medications should not be underestimated.

Biogenic selenium nanoparticles produced by Lactobacillus casei ATCC 393 inhibit colon cancer cell growth in vitro and in vivo

“…9 Moreover, it is well documented in the literature that nano-Se, regardless of the method of its synthesis, induces apoptosis by depletion of mitochondrial membrane potential, cytochrome c release and production of ROS. 53 Indeed, SeNps were found to induce the formation of ROS in HT29 cells in a concentration dependent manner evident by the DCFDA (Carboxy-H 2 DCFDA: 6-carboxy-2',7'-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate) flow cytometry histograms in Fig. 5.…”

“…Noteworthy, HT29, the human colon cancer cell line studied in this work, has been previously reported to be sensitive to nano-Se. 53,54 Subsequently, focusing on HT29 colon cancer cells of human origin, we observed that part of the antiproliferative effects exerted by SeNps, LCSe or LC, can be attributed to the induction of apoptotic cell death. For the comparative analysis of the apoptotic effects induced by SeNps, LCSe and LC, the time-dependent dynamic process of apoptosis for each treatment group was studied in a pre-defined time frame (20 -26 h) for 10 8 CFUs/ml for LC and LCSe or 15 μg/ml for SeNps (15 μg of SeNps were extracted from 10 8 CFUs of LCSe) by flow cytometric analysis of the double AnnexinV-FITC/PI (AnnexinV-Fluorescein isothiocyanate / Propidium iodide) staining.…”

Antibacterial activity of SPIONs versus ferrous and ferric ions under aerobic and anaerobic conditions: a preliminary mechanism study

“…Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs), as the main subset of magnetic nanoparticles (NPs), have attracted the researchers' interest in many fields, especially modern medicine [1]. Their unique attributes, arising from their quantum size, large surface/volume ratio, thermal energy, and minimal side effects, making them a promising tool in biological applications [2,3]. These versatile nanoplatforms can be used in the diagnosis (cellular and functional magnetic resonance imaging, biosensors, and immunoassays), treatment (targeted drug or gene delivery, hyperthermia, and thrombolysis), and monitoring of diseases outcomes (tissue repair fluids and tissue engineering [3][4][5].…”

Understanding Metal Dynamics Between Cancer Cells and Macrophages: Competition or Synergism?

“…Various studies have identified many classes of natural as well as synthetic organoselenium compounds which act as cytotoxic agents, and the research is ongoing for identifying more such compounds (154)(155)(156)(157). Keeping in mind the immunomodulatory function of selenium, selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) have been synthesized (158,159). SeNPs have potential to decrease tumor cell proliferation, drive the anti-tumor function of TAMs, and in virtue of their properties, be used for imaging diagnosis and cancer therapy with low costs and negligible side effects (154,158,159).…”

“…Keeping in mind the immunomodulatory function of selenium, selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) have been synthesized (158,159). SeNPs have potential to decrease tumor cell proliferation, drive the anti-tumor function of TAMs, and in virtue of their properties, be used for imaging diagnosis and cancer therapy with low costs and negligible side effects (154,158,159). An impressive number of in vitro and in vivo studies clearly confirms the scarce toxicity of selenium compounds as monotherapy and in combination with classical chemotherapy (154).…”