Target-specific drug release is indispensable to improve chemotherapeutic efficacy as it enhances drug uptake and penetration into tumors. Sono-responsive drug-loaded nano-/micro-particles are a promising solution for achieving target specificity by exposing them to ultrasound near tumors. However, the complicated synthetic processes and limited ultrasound (US) exposure conditions, such as limited control of ultrasound focal depth and acoustic power, prevent the practical application of this approach in clinical practice. Here, we propose a convex acoustic lens-attached US (CALUS) as a simple, economic, and efficient alternative of focused US for drug delivery system (DDS) application. The CALUS was characterized both numerically and experimentally using a hydrophone. In vitro, microbubbles (MBs) inside microfluidic channels were destroyed using the CALUS with various acoustic parameters (acoustic pressure [P], pulse repetition frequency [PRF], and duty cycle) and flow velocity. In vivo, tumor inhibition was evaluated using melanoma-bearing mice by characterizing tumor growth rate, animal weight, and intratumoral drug concentration with/without CALUS DDS. US beams were measured to be efficiently converged by CALUS, which was consistent with our simulation results. The acoustic parameters were optimized through the CALUS-induced MB destruction test (P = 2.34 MPa, PRF = 100 kHz, and duty cycle = 9%); this optimal parameter combination successfully induced MB destruction inside the microfluidic channel with an average flow velocity of up to 9.6 cm/s. The CALUS also enhanced the therapeutic effects of an antitumor drug (doxorubicin) in vivo in a murine melanoma model. The combination of the doxorubicin and the CALUS inhibited tumor growth by ∼ 55% more than doxorubicin alone, clearly indicating synergistic antitumor efficacy. Our tumor growth inhibition performance was better than other methods based on drug carriers, even without a time-consuming and complicated chemical synthesis process. This result suggests that our novel, simple, economic, and efficient target-specific DDS may offer a transition from preclinical research to clinical trials and a potential treatment approach for patient-centered healthcare.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpharm.2023.123118 | DOI Listing |
Front Biosci (Landmark Ed)
January 2025
Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, The Affiliated Jiangyin Hospital of Nantong University, 214400 Jiangyin, Jiangsu, China.
Background: This study investigates the role of small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO)-specific peptidase 5 (SENP5), a key regulator of SUMOylation, in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), a lethal disease, and its underlying molecular mechanisms.
Methods: Differentially expressed genes between ESCC mouse oesophageal cancer tissues and normal tissues were analysed via RNA-seq; among them, SENP5 expression was upregulated, and this gene was selected for further analysis. Immunohistochemistry and western blotting were then used to validate the increased protein level of SENP5 in both mouse and human ESCC samples.
Front Biosci (Landmark Ed)
January 2025
Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples "Federico II", 80131 Naples, Italy.
Background: Thyroid Hormones (THs) critically impact human cancer. Although endowed with both tumor-promoting and inhibiting effects in different cancer types, excess of THs has been linked to enhanced tumor growth and progression. Breast cancer depends on the interaction between bulk tumor cells and the surrounding microenvironment in which mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) exert powerful pro-tumorigenic activities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Biosci (Landmark Ed)
January 2025
Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, School of Health Sciences, University of Thessaly, 41500 Larissa, Greece.
Background: Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1α) and its related vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) may play a significant role in atherosclerosis and their targeting is a strategic approach that may affect multiple pathways influencing disease progression. This study aimed to perform a systematic review to reveal current evidence on the role of HIF-1α and VEGF immunophenotypes with other prognostic markers as potential biomarkers of atherosclerosis prognosis and treatment efficacy.
Methods: We performed a systematic review of the current literature to explore the role of HIF-1α and VEGF protein expression along with the relation to the prognosis and therapeutic strategies of atherosclerosis.
Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol
March 2025
Department of Endocrinology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, Harbin, People's Republic of China.
Isoferulic acid (IA), a derivative of cinnamic acid, is derived from Danshen and exhibits anticancer properties by disrupting cancer cell activities. However, its role in pancreatic cancer, the "king of cancer", was unknown. In this study, pancreatic cancer cells were subjected to treatment with IA (6.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFViruses
January 2025
Surgical Neurology Branch, NINDS, NIH 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a devastating, aggressive primary brain tumor with poor patient outcomes and a five-year survival of less than 10%. Significant limitations to effective GBM treatment include poor drug delivery across the blood-brain barrier, drug resistance, and complex genetic tumor alterations. Gene therapy uses a mechanism different from other GBM therapies to reduce tumor growth and enhance antitumor immunity.
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