<p>Gold Nanoparticles Mediated Drug-Gene Combinational Therapy for Breast Cancer Treatment</p>
Binita Shrestha, Lijun Wang, Hao Zhang, Chiung-Yu Hung, Liang Tang
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Cancer is a complex heterogeneous disease to which singular modes of treatment mostly fail to produce a desired therapeutic efficacy. Targeting different cellular pathways using combinational therapies has been gaining popularity in cancer treatment, with the added benefit of reducing dosage and side effects. METHODS: A gold nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery nanoplatform was developed for co-delivery of doxorubicin and polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) siRNA. Gold nanoparticles were coated with polyethyleneimine to facilitate assembly of PLK1 on the surface. Doxorubicin was loaded on nanoparticles through a pH-sensitive linker with a thiol group at one terminal end for controlled release. RESULTS: value clearly demonstrated the synergistic effect of combined drug and gene delivery over their individual delivery in a cancer treatment model. CONCLUSION: This study may provide an adaptable, facile platform to investigate drug-siRNA combinations for cancer inhibition.