Targeted tumour theranostics in mice via carbon quantum dots structurally mimicking large amino acids
Menée à l'aide d'un modèle murin de gliome humain et de xénogreffes, cette étude met en évidence l'intérêt thérapeutique de nanoparticules de carbone dont la structure, maintenue par des groupes carboxyles et amines, permet d'imiter de grands acides aminés et de délivrer dans les cellules cancéreuses des médicaments via les transporteurs de type 1 (présents dans la plupart des tumeurs)
Strategies for selectively imaging and delivering drugs to tumours typically leverage differentially upregulated surface molecules on cancer cells. Here, we show that intravenously injected carbon quantum dots, functionalized with multiple paired α-carboxyl and amino groups that bind to the large neutral amino acid transporter 1 (which is expressed in most tumours), selectively accumulate in human tumour xenografts in mice and in an orthotopic mouse model of human glioma. The functionalized quantum dots, which structurally mimic large amino acids and can be loaded with aromatic drugs through π–π stacking interactions, enabled—in the absence of detectable toxicity—near-infrared fluorescence and photoacoustic imaging of the tumours and a reduction in tumour burden after the targeted delivery of chemotherapeutics to the tumours. The versatility of functionalization and high tumour selectivity of the quantum dots make them broadly suitable for tumour-specific imaging and drug delivery.