Nanoplex delivery of siRNA and prodrug enzyme for multimodality image-guided molecular pathway targeted cancer therapy.

ABSTRACT: The ability to destroy cancer cells while sparing normal tissue is highly sought after in cancer therapy. Small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated silencing of cancer-cell-specific targets and the use of a prodrug enzyme delivered to the tumor to convert a nontoxic prodrug to an active drug are two promising approaches in achieving this goal. Combining both approaches into a single treatment strategy can amplify selective targeting of cancer cells while sparing normal tissue. Noninvasive imaging can assist in optimizing such a strategy by determining effective tumor delivery of the siRNA and prodrug enzyme to time prodrug administration and detecting target down-regulation by siRNA and prodrug conversion by the enzyme. In proof-of-principle studies, we synthesized a nanoplex carrying magneti

SUBMITTER: Li C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2991391 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature