Efficacy, long-term toxicity, and mechanistic studies of gold nanorods photothermal therapy of cancer in xenograft mice

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 114; no. 15; pp. E3110 - E3118
• Main Authors: Ali, Moustafa R. K., Rahman, Mohammad Aminur, Wu, Yue, Han, Tiegang, Peng, Xianghong, Mackey, Megan A., Wang, Dongsheng, Shin, Hyung Ju, Chen, Zhuo G., Xiao, Haopeng, Wu, Ronghu, Tang, Yan, Shin, Dong M., El-Sayed, Mostafa A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences 11-04-2017
• Series: PNAS Plus
• Subjects: Animal models; Animal tissues; Animals; Apoptosis; Apoptosis - drug effects; Apoptosis - radiation effects; Biocompatibility; Biological Sciences; Cancer; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell - metabolism; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell - pathology; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell - therapy; Cell death; Cell Proliferation - drug effects; Cell Proliferation - radiation effects; Combined Modality Therapy; Conjugation; Cytochrome; Cytochrome c; Cytochromes; Female; Gangrene; Gold; Gold - chemistry; Gold - pharmacology; Head and Neck Neoplasms - metabolism; Head and Neck Neoplasms - pathology; Head and Neck Neoplasms - therapy; Humans; Hyperthermia, Induced; In vivo methods and tests; Interleukin 1; Interleukin 18; Lasers; Leukocytes (neutrophilic); Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mice, Nude; Mortality; Nanorods; Nanotubes - chemistry; Near infrared radiation; Necrosis; Perturbation; Phototherapy; Physical Sciences; Pin1 protein; PNAS Plus; Polyethylene glycol; Proteomics; Rifampin; Rodents; Therapy; Toxicity; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Tumors; Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays; Xenografts; Xenotransplantation; long-term toxicity; apoptosis; xenograft mice; gold nanorods; plasmonic photothermal therapy
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1619302114

Gold nanorods (AuNRs)-assisted plasmonic photothermal therapy (AuNRs-PPTT) is a promising strategy for combating cancer in which AuNRs absorb near-infrared light and convert it into heat, causing cell death mainly by apoptosis and/or necrosis. Developing a valid PPTT that induces cancer cell apoptosis and avoids necrosis in vivo and exploring its molecular mechanism of action is of great importance. Furthermore, assessment of the long-term fate of the AuNRs after treatment is critical for clinical use. We first optimized the size, surface modification [rifampicin (RF) conjugation], and concentration (2.5 nM) of AuNRs and the PPTT laser power (2 W/cm²) to achieve maximal induction of apoptosis. Second, we studied the potential mechanism of action of AuNRs-PPTT using quantitative proteomic analysis in mouse tumor tissues. Several death pathways were identified, mainly involving apoptosis and cell death by releasing neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) (NETosis), which were more obvious upon PPTT using RF-conjugated AuNRs (AuNRs@RF) than with polyethylene glycol thiol-conjugated AuNRs. Cytochrome c and p53-related apoptosis mechanisms were identified as contributing to the enhanced effect of PPTT with AuNRs@RF. Furthermore, Pin1 and IL18-related signaling contributed to the observed perturbation of the NETosis pathway by PPTT with AuNRs@RF. Third, we report a 15-month toxicity study that showed no long-term toxicity of AuNRs in vivo. Together, these data demonstrate that our AuNRs-PPTT platform is effective and safe for cancer therapy in mouse models. These findings provide a strong framework for the translation of PPTT to the clinic.