Photodynamic Therapy with an AlPcS4Cl Gold Nanoparticle Conjugate Decreases Lung Cancer’s Metastatic Potential

Abstract

Cancer metastasis and the risk of secondary tumours are the leading causes of cancer related death, and despite advances in cancer treatment, lung cancer remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide. A crucial characteristic of metastases is cell invasion potential, which is mainly determined by cell motility. Photodynamic therapy (PDT), known for its minimally invasive cancer treatment approach, has been extensively researched in vitro and is currently being developed clinically. Due to their physicochemical and optical properties, gold nanoparticles have been shown to increase the effectivity of PDT by increasing the loading potential of the photosensitizer (PS) inside cancer cells, to be biocompatible and nontoxic, to provide enhanced permeability and retention, and to induce lung cancer cell death. However, effects of gold nano phototherapy on lung cancer metastasis are yet to be investigated. The aim of this in vitro study was to determine the inhibitory effects of PS-gold nano bioconjugates on lung cancer metastasis by analysing cell proliferation, migration, cell cycle analysis, and extracellular matrix cell invasion. The findings indicate that nano-mediated PDT treatment of lung cancer prevents lung cancer migration and invasion, induces cell cycle arrest, and reduces lung cancer proliferation abilities, elaborating on the efficacy of the nano-mediated PDT treatment of lung cancer.

Plasmon-enhanced nano-photosensitizers: game-changers in photodynamic therapy of cancers

“…3(d)), which can be a promising candidate for use in cancer therapy through PDT. Crous and Abrahamse 47 studied the effect of the PS-AuNP nanoplatform on PDT activity against lung cancer cells A549. AlPcS 4 Cl was utilized as the PS and was conjugated to AuNP-PEG-COOH to enhance the PS uptake by cancerous cells, with a final average diameter of 62 nm.…”

Recent Progress of Gold-Based Nanostructures towards Future Emblem of Photo-Triggered Cancer Theranostics: A Special Focus on Combinatorial Phototherapies

“…Recently, Anine Crous reported the application of AuNPs as a carrier for the AlPcS 4 Cl PS. In this study, synthesized gold nanoparticles were conjugated AlPcS 4 Cl, and in vitro models revealed that phototherapy using the AlPcS 4 Cl-gold nano bioconjugate was potential against human lung (A549) cancer cells [ 113 ]. In another approach, specific targeted PDT was carried out with folic acid (FA) and protoporphyrin IX (PPIX) conjugation on surface-modified AuNPs.…”

A Gold Nanoparticle Bioconjugate Delivery System for Active Targeted Photodynamic Therapy of Cancer and Cancer Stem Cells

“…In a recent study, a PS AlPcS 4 Cl was conjugated onto an AuNP to evaluate its cytotoxic impacts on lung cancer metastasis. The study showed that PS-AuNP-mediated PDT limits lung cancer’s migratory and invasive potential, inhibits the cell cycle, and decreases lung cancer proliferation [ 70 ]. In addition, a study by Chi and colleagues (2020) evaluated the PDT effects of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA)-AuNPs conjugates on epidermoid carcinoma cells.…”