KFU chemists research nanocontainers capable of inhibiting cancer cell growth
A paper by Kazan Federal University, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials, and Federal Center for Toxicological, Radiation, and Biological Safety was published in International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
The study was part of Russian Science Foundation-funded grant ‘Multifunctional particles of non-metal oxides and macrocyclic compounds for a 3D constructor of self-assembled nanostructures’; it’s headed by Senior Research Associate Liudmila Yakimova.
“We have successfully synthesized new pillar[5]arene derivatives containing amino acid fragments (L-tryptophan and L-phenylalanine), and have shown the ability of synthesized macrocycles to form nanoparticles with fluorescein (luminous dye). Fluorescein is found to be released in neutral (pH = 7.4) and alkaline (pH = 9.2) buffer solutions only for associatate based macrocyle containing L-tryptophan fragments and nanoparticle pillar[5]phenylalanine, with fluorescein remain unchanged under all conditions studied,” explains Yakimova.
Since the created macromolecules release or retain the dye molecule depending on the acidity of the medium, it can be said that they are chemically manageable.
New macrocycles act as containers for biologically active substrates and are therapeutically active in killing cancer cells.
The obtained compounds exhibited statistically significant cytotoxic activity with respect to the cell lines of adenocarcinoma of the breast MCF-7 and the prostate carcinoma PC-3. Pillar[5]arene/fluorescein nanoparticles have a dual function- therapeutic and dosing, – that is, they are able to suppress tumor cells and simultaneously act as a container for controlled substrate release.
“Packaging antibacterial substances into medicinal forms, such as nanofibers and micelles, allows for more targeted drug delivery. The substances themselves remain effective for a longer period of time than in the normal mode of delivery,” concludes the interviewee.