Conclusion
This theranostic nanocomposite greatly restricts the growth of drug-resistant breast tumors and activates a strong immune response as well, providing an opportunity for the development of therapeutics that reverse tumor MDR and metastasis at the subcellular level.
Methods
In this study, silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) and peptide- functionalized doxorubicin (PDOX) were used to prepare a theranostic nanocomposite (Ag-TF@PDOX), which induced organelle-mediated immunochemotherapy and drug efflux protein inhibition in drug-resistant breast cancer cells (MCF-7/ADR) via a strategy based on endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and cell-nucleus penetration.
Results
The silver nanoparticle-triggered persistent activation of ER stress synergizes with chemotherapy to enhance cytotoxicity and stimulate the ICD effect. It has the potential to enhance chemosensitivity by downregulating of P-gp expression due to the increased production of ATP-consuming chaperones. In addition, the novel peptide (CB5005), which not only penetrates the cell membrane but also has a nuclear localization sequence, is conjugated to DOX to improve both cellular internalization and intranuclear accumulation. Moreover, surface TA-Fe3+ engineering endows the nanocomposite with ATP-responsive disassembly and ATP depletion properties to improve biocompatibility and decrease ATP-dependent drug efflux. Ag-TF@PDOX has potential as a dual-mode (PAI/MRI) contrast-enhanced agent for realizing theranostic guidance.