Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: To help meet the goal of reducing the burden of cancer, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, is engaged in

Home > Press > To help meet the goal of reducing the burden of cancer, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, is engaged in

Abstract:
Small pieces of nucleic acid, known as siRNAs (short interfering RNAs), can turn off the production of specific proteins, a property that makes them one of the more promising new classes of anticancer drugs in development. Indeed, at least two siRNA-based anticancer therapies, both delivered to tumors in nanoparticles, have begun human clinical trials. Now, three new reports highlight the progress that researchers are making in developing broadly applicable, nanoparticle-enabled siRNA anticancer therapeutics.

To help meet the goal of reducing the burden of cancer, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, is engaged in

Bethesda , MD | Posted on March 27th, 2008

In the first report, Mark E. Davis, Ph.D., an investigator in the Nanosystems Biology Cancer Center at the California Institute of Technology, and former graduate student Derek Bartlett, Ph.D., now at the City of Hope, used mathematical modeling and results from dosing experiments in a mouse model of human cancer to explain therapeutic response with various dosing regimes for both targeted and untargeted siRNA-containing nanoparticles. The results of this work, published in the journal Biotechnology and Bioengineering, provide guidelines for optimizing the design of siRNA-based anticancer therapies.

In their experiments, the investigators used a cyclodextrin-based nanoparticle to deliver an siRNA agent designed to reduce production of ribonucleotide reductase subunit M2 (RRM2), which plays an important role in tumor growth. The investigators created two versions of their nanoparticle formulation, one targeted to transferrin, a protein overexpressed by many tumors, and the other untargeted. They also used two different dosing regimens, one consisting of three consecutive daily injections, the other consisting of three injections spaced 3 days apart.

Data from these experiments showed that targeted nanoparticles were far more effective than untargeted nanoparticles at reducing tumor growth. Dosing regimen, however, had no statistically significant impact on the outcome for either nanoparticle formulation. Closer examination of tumors removed from the animals following treatment showed that the targeted nanoparticles were able to deliver siRNA into the tumors, although the final distribution of siRNA throughout the tumors was not uniform. The investigators then modeled the observed responses; the results of these simulations led them to conclude that it is not necessary to persistently shut down protein production in order to achieve a therapeutic response using siRNA. Instead, they concluded, it is more important to maximize the number of cells reached with a sufficient dose of siRNA agent.

In a second report, Leaf Huang, Ph.D., and his colleagues at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, describe their development of a self-assembling siRNA-liposomal formulation that they can then coat with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) linked to a targeting agent. This targeted liposome was fourfold more effective than an untargeted, but otherwise identical, liposome at delivering siRNA into tumors. Gene silencing activity was also higher for the targeted version, with the therapeutic effect lasting 4 days. The investigators also found that although the targeted nanoparticle effectively penetrated lung metastases, it did not enter liver cells. In addition, the targeted nanoparticle showed little immunotoxicity. These results appear in the Journal of Controlled Release.

Another paper published in the same journal, this one from Stefaan De Smedt, Ph.D., and his collaborators at Ghent University in Belgium, describes a method that could prove useful in both preclinical and clinical studies of nanoparticle-enabled siRNA therapeutics. Their new technique uses fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy to measure the stability of these formulations, even at low concentrations, in human serum in less than 1 minute. Serum stability of siRNA-containing nanoparticles is essential to therapeutic efficacy, given that most studies have shown that naked siRNA has little effect on tumors. Using this method, the investigators were able to show that even PEGylated siRNA-containing liposomes were releasing the bulk of their cargo in serum.

The work from Drs. Davis and Bartlett, supported by the NCI's Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer, is detailed in the paper "Impact of tumor-specific targeting and dosing schedule on tumor growth inhibition after intravenous administration of siRNA-containing nanoparticles." An abstract of this paper is available through PubMed.

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About National Cancer Institute
To help meet the goal of reducing the burden of cancer, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, is engaged in efforts to harness the power of nanotechnology to radically change the way we diagnose, treat and prevent cancer.

The NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer is a comprehensive, systematized initiative encompassing the public and private sectors, designed to accelerate the application of the best capabilities of nanotechnology to cancer.

Currently, scientists are limited in their ability to turn promising molecular discoveries into benefits for cancer patients. Nanotechnology can provide the technical power and tools that will enable those developing new diagnostics, therapeutics, and preventives to keep pace with today’s explosion in knowledge.

For more information, please click here

Contacts:
National Cancer Institute
Office of Technology & Industrial Relations
ATTN: NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer
Building 31, Room 10A49
31 Center Drive , MSC 2580
Bethesda , MD 20892-2580

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