Biological mechanisms of gold nanoparticle radiosensitization

Cancer Nanotechnology

Review

Kevin M. Prise¹  Soraia Rosa¹  Karl T. Butterworth¹  Chris Connolly²  Giuseppe Schettino³ 

[1] Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queens University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, BT9 7AE, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK;Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, Queens University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, BT9 7AE, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK;National Physical Laboratory, TW11 0LW, Teddington, London, UK;National Physical Laboratory, TW11 0LW, Teddington, London, UK;

关键词: Cancer therapy;    Radiation therapy;    Radiosensitization;    Gold nanoparticle;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12645-017-0026-0

 received in 2016-06-01, accepted in 2017-01-20,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

There has been growing interest in the use of nanomaterials for a range of biomedical applications over the last number of years. In particular, gold nanoparticles (GNPs) possess a number of unique properties that make them ideal candidates as radiosensitizers on the basis of their strong photoelectric absorption coefficient and ease of synthesis. However, despite promising preclinical evidence in vitro supported by a limited amount of in vivo experiments, along with advances in mechanistic understanding, GNPs have not yet translated into the clinic. This may be due to disparity between predicted levels of radiosensitization based on physical action, observed biological response and an incomplete mechanistic understanding, alongside current experimental limitations. This paper provides a review of the current state of the field, highlighting the potential underlying biological mechanisms in GNP radiosensitization and examining the barriers to clinical translation.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2017