Lorenzana Vázquez, Génesis

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    Design of gold nanoparticles functionalized with biologically active thiolated compounds for enhanced antiproliferative effects in breast cancer cells using photothermal therapy
    (2024-05-09) Lorenzana Vázquez, Génesis; Meléndez Martínez, Enrique; College of Arts and Sciences - Sciences; Rivera Portalatín, Nilka M.; Morell Cruz, Luis A.; Román Velázquez, Félix R.; Department of Chemistry; Bezares Salinas, Francisco
    Breast cancer constitutes a substantial global health challenge, representing 12.5% of new annual cancer cases worldwide. The primary hurdle lies in the adverse effects associated with conventional anticancer drugs. This research addresses this issue by utilizing gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to load these drugs onto their surface, thereby reducing required drug amounts and minimizing side effects. The objective is to synthesize, characterize, and functionalize AuNPs with biologically active thiolated compounds for enhanced antiproliferative effects in breast cancer cells using photothermal therapy. Various designs of AuNPs were explored in terms of their physicochemical properties and stability. Unfunctionalized and functionalized AuNPs underwent characterization using UV-Vis and Raman spectroscopy, TEM, and Zetasizer. Citrate-capped AuNPs excelled as the most stable and monodispersed colloids. After functionalization with the anticancer drug 2-thiouracil (2-TU), chemical binding mechanisms were elucidated, revealing the chemisorption of 2-TU on AuNPs. Antiproliferative activity was evaluated using the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line. Results showed a significant enhancement in the antiproliferative activity of 2-TU when loaded onto AuNPs, particularly under visible light irradiation, reducing the half-maximal inhibitory concentration by 50% compared to unloaded AuNPs. This synergistic effect suggests a potential reduction in 2-TU drug concentration and associated side effects during treatments. This study introduced a proof of concept for using low-power visible radiation, highlighting the potential of 2-TU-functionalized AuNPs in photothermal therapy with visible green light (520 nm), minimizing tissue damage compared to UV-based therapies, and presenting a promising strategy for treating triple-negative breast cancer.