Plasmonic imaging of human oral cancer cell communities during programmed cell death by nuclear-targeting silver nanoparticles.

ABSTRACT: Plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) have become a useful platform in medicine for potential uses in disease diagnosis and treatment. Recently, it has been reported that plasmonic NPs conjugated to nuclear-targeting peptides cause DNA damage and apoptotic populations in cancer cells. In the present work, we utilized the plasmonic scattering property and the ability of nuclear-targeted silver nanoparticles (NLS/RGD-AgNPs) to induce programmed cell death in order to image in real-time the behavior of human oral squamous carcinoma (HSC-3) cell communities during and after the induction of apoptosis. Plasmonic live-cell imaging revealed that HSC-3 cells behave as nonprofessional phagocytes. The induction of apoptosis in some cells led to attraction of and their subsequent engulfment by neighboring ce

SUBMITTER: Austin LA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4721227 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature