Relative study between anti-EGFR and GE-11 peptide conjugated gold nanoparticles for in vivo targeting in pancreatic cancer [abstract]

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer related deaths in the United States due to its severe aggressiveness and lethal malignancy. Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) is over expressed in more than 95% of human pancreatic cancer patients. A number of peptides and monoclonal antibodies have been developed to target the EGFR in pancreatic cancer. Our research has focused on developing EGFR targeting biomolecule conjugated gold nanoparticles for the diagnosis and staging of various cancers. In this study, we have synthesized a series of Antibody EGFR and EGFR-peptide (GE-11) conjugated AuNPs. We investigated the in vivo EGFR targeting characteristics of these conjugates in pancreatic tumor bearing SCID mice models. Our investigation has provided evidence that the peptide conjugated AuNPs have high in vivo mobility and targets pancreatic tumor effectively. We have also established that the EGFR-peptide-AuNP conjugates serve as better X-ray contrast agents for early detection of pancreatic cancer in mice models. The details of this comparative study will be presented in this poster

A Comparative Study between Antibody and Peptide Conjugated Gold Nanoparticles for In Vivo Targeting of EGFR in Pancreatic Cancer Bearing Mice Models [abstract]

Nanoscience Poster SessionPancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer related deaths in the United States due to its severe aggressiveness and lethal malignancy. Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) is over expressed in more than 95% of human pancreatic cancer patients. A number of peptides and monoclonal antibodies have been developed to target the EGFR in pancreatic cancer. Our research has focused on developing EGFR targeting biomolecule conjugated gold nanoparticles for the diagnosis and staging of various cancers. In this study, we synthesized a series of Antibody EGFR and EGFR-peptide conjugated AuNPs. We investigated the in vivo EGFR targeting characteristics of these conjugates in pancreatic tumor bearing SCID mice models. Our investigation establishes that the peptide conjugated AuNPs have high in vivo mobility and targets pancreatic tumor effectively. We have also established that EGFR-peptide -AuNP conjugates act as better X-ray contrast agents for early detection of pancreatic cancer in mice models. The details of this comparative study will be presented in this poster

An Effective Strategy for the Synthesis of Biocompatible Gold Nanoparticles Using Cinnamon Phytochemicals for Phantom CT Imaging and Photoacoustic Detection of Cancerous Cells

This is a post-print version of the Pharmaceutical Research Article. The original publication is available at www.springerlink.com. DOI 10.1007/s11095-010-0276-6Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to explore the utilization of cinnamon coated gold nanoparticles (Cin-AuNPs) as CT/optical contrast enhancement agent for detection of cancer cells. Methods: Cin-AuNPs were synthesized by a “Green” procedure and the detailed characterization has been performed by physic-chemical analysis. Cytotoxicity and cellualar uptake studies were carried out in normal human fibroblast and cancerous (PC-3 and MCF-7) cells respectively. The efficacy of detecting cancerous cells was monitored using photoacoustic technique. In vivo biodistribution was studied after IV injection of Cin-AuNPs in mice and a CT phantom model was generated. Results: Biocompatible Cin-AuNPs were synthesized with high purity. Significant uptake of these gold nanoparticles was observed in PC-3 and MCF-7 cells. Cin-AuNPs internalized in cancerous cells facilitate detectable photoacoustic signals. In vivo biodistribution in normal mouse shows steady accumulation of gold nanoparticles in lungs and rapid clearance from blood. Quantitative analysis of CT values in phantom model reveals that the cinnamon phytochemicals coated AuNPs has reasonable attenuation efficiency. Conclusions: The results indicate that these non-toxic Cin-AuNPs can serve as excellent CT/ photoacoustic contrast enhancement agents and may provide a novel approach toward the tumor detection through nanopharmaceuticals.This work has been supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute under the Cancer Nanotechnology Platform program (grant number: 5R01CA119412-01), NIH - 1R21CA128460-01; NIH-SBIR-Contract no. 241, and University of Missouri-Research Board - Program C8761 RB 06-030