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Smart Nanoparticles as Advanced Anti-Akt Kinase Delivery Systems for Pancreatic Cancer Therapy

Gonzalez-Valdivieso, J; Garcia-Sampedro, A; Hall, AR; Girotti, A; Arias, FJ; Pereira, SP; Acedo, P; (2021) Smart Nanoparticles as Advanced Anti-Akt Kinase Delivery Systems for Pancreatic Cancer Therapy. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces , 13 (47) pp. 55790-55805. 10.1021/acsami.1c14592. Green open access

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Abstract

Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers partly due to late diagnosis, poor drug delivery to the target site, and acquired resistance to therapy. Therefore, more effective therapies are urgently needed to improve the outcome of patients. In this work, we have tested self-assembling genetically engineered polymeric nanoparticles formed by elastin-like recombinamers (ELRs), carrying a small peptide inhibitor of the protein kinase Akt, in both PANC-1 and patient-derived pancreatic cancer cells (PDX models). Nanoparticle cell uptake was measured by flow cytometry, and subcellular localization was determined by confocal microscopy, which showed a lysosomal localization of these nanoparticles. Furthermore, metabolic activity and cell viability were significantly reduced after incubation with nanoparticles carrying the Akt inhibitor in a time- and dose-dependent fashion. Self-assembling 73 ± 3.2 nm size nanoparticles inhibited phosphorylation and consequent activation of Akt protein, blocked the NF-κB signaling pathway, and triggered caspase 3-mediated apoptosis. Furthermore, in vivo assays showed that ELR-based nanoparticles were suitable devices for drug delivery purposes with long circulating time and minimum toxicity. Hence, the use of these smart nanoparticles could lead to the development of more effective treatment options for pancreatic cancer based on the inhibition of Akt.

Type: Article
Title: Smart Nanoparticles as Advanced Anti-Akt Kinase Delivery Systems for Pancreatic Cancer Therapy
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c14592
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.1c14592
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher's terms and conditions.
Keywords: nanoparticle drug delivery elastin-like recombinamer Akt pancreatic cancer
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine > Inst for Liver and Digestive Hlth
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10138868
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