Identifying and targeting angiogenesis-related microRNAs in ovarian cancer.

Current anti-angiogenic therapy for cancer is based mainly on inhibition of the vascular endothelial growth factor pathway. However, due to the transient and only modest benefit from such therapy, additional approaches are needed. Deregulation of microRNAs (miRNAs) has been demonstrated to be involved in tumor angiogenesis and offers opportunities for a new therapeutic approach.

Reconstituted HDL: Drug Delivery Platform for Overcoming Biological Barriers to Cancer Therapy.

Drug delivery to malignant tumors is limited by several factors, including off-target toxicities and suboptimal benefits to cancer patient. Major research efforts have been directed toward developing novel technologies involving nanoparticles (NPs) to overcome these challenges. Major obstacles, however, including, opsonization, transport across cancer cell membranes, multidrug-resistant proteins, and endosomal sequestration of the therapeutic agent continue to limit the efficiency of cancer chemotherapy.

Lipoproteins for therapeutic delivery: recent advances and future opportunities.

The physiological role(s) of mammalian plasma lipoproteins is to transport hydrophobic molecules (primarily cholesterol and triacylglycerols) to their respective destinations. Lipoproteins have also been studied as drug-delivery agents due to their advantageous payload capacity, long residence time in the circulation and biocompatibility. The purpose of this review is to briefly discuss current findings with the focus on each type of formulation's potential for clinical applications.

Targeting the SR-B1 Receptor as a Gateway for Cancer Therapy and Imaging.

Malignant tumors display remarkable heterogeneity to the extent that even at the same tissue site different types of cells with varying genetic background may be found. In contrast, a relatively consistent marker the scavenger receptor type B1 (SR-B1) has been found to be consistently overexpressed by most tumor cells. Scavenger Receptor Class B Type I (SR-BI) is a high density lipoprotein (HDL) receptor that facilitates the uptake of cholesterol esters from circulating lipoproteins.

Validation of the reconstituted high-density lipoprotein (rHDL) drug delivery platform using dilauryl fluorescein (DLF).

Dilauryl fluorescein (DLF) is a lipid soluble molecule that becomes fluorescent when lauric acid is removed by hydrolysis The purpose of these studies was to evaluate DLF as a potential probe for the function of reconstituted high-density lipoproteins (rHDL) as hydrophobic drug transport vehicles. The DLF containing rHDL nanoparticles were characterized regarding their physical/chemical properties, including molecular diameter, molecular weight, chemical composition, and buoyant density. We investigated the uptake of DLF from rHDL in cells that overexpress the scavenger receptor (SR-B1), known to facilitate the selective cellular uptake of cholesteryl esters from HDL.

Receptor mediated uptake of paclitaxel from a synthetic high density lipoprotein nanocarrier.

The purpose of these studies was to determine the mechanism(s) whereby paclitaxel (PTX), is taken up by cancer cells, once encapsulated into synthetic/reconstituted high density lipoprotein (rHDL). The uptake of PTX was found to be facilitated by the scavenger receptor type B-1 (SR-B1) when drug-loaded rHDL particles were incubated with cells that express the SRB1 receptor. Studies with double-labeled, PTX containing rHDL nanoparticles showed that prostate cancer (PC-3) cells incorporated PTX primarily via a selective (SR-B1 type) uptake mechanism.

Evaluation of synthetic/reconstituted high-density lipoproteins as delivery vehicles for paclitaxel.

Reconstituted (synthetic) high-density lipoprotein particles carrying paclitaxel (rHDL/PTX) were prepared with substantially higher PTX content than reported earlier. The rHDL/PTX complexes seemed to be primarily spherical nanoparticles when examined via electron microscopy, with a constant composition, molecular weight and exceptional stability even after ultracentrifugation and storage for up to 6 months. The rHDL/PTX nanoparticles had superior cytotoxicity against several cancer cell lines (MCF7, DU145, OV1063 and OVCAR-3), the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) having been found to be 5-20 times lower than that of the free drug.

Trojan horse meets magic bullet to spawn a novel, highly effective drug delivery model.

Because of their physicochemical properties and the selective receptor-mediated uptake of their core components, reconstituted high-density lipoproteins have unique advantages over conventional formulations to serve as targeted drug delivery agents.