USE OF GOLD NANOPARTICLE CONJUGATES FOR ANIMAL TUMOR IMMUNOTHERAPY
DOI 10.31588/2413_4201_1883_3_267_33 УДК 57.083.3
Abstract
Nanomaterials in medicine have attracted significant attention due to their ability to improve visualization and treatment of oncological diseases. Being biocompatible and low toxicity, gold nanoparticles are highly effective in cancer therapy. Studying the immune response elicited by gold nanoparticles used as adjuvants helps determine their potential for developing next-generation vaccines. Gold nanoparticles conjugated with tumor markers can be used to create prototypes of prophylactic and therapeutic antitumor vaccines. Incorporating gold nanoparticles into vaccine formulations enhances the stability of the antigenic component, improves its transport to and retention in lymph nodes, and boosts antigen uptake by antigen-presenting cells. The use of such particles in anticancer vaccines to increase their efficacy is a topic of current interest. Conjugates based on gold nanoparticles and tumor antigens isolated from murine MH22a hepatoma cells were synthesized and characterized. Laboratory animals were immunized with the resulting conjugates. The preparation was administered to mice intraperitoneally in two doses with a 10-day interval. Enhanced respiratory and proliferative activity of peritoneal macrophages and spleen cells was observed following immunization with the conjugate. Seven days after the final immunization, the mice were challenged with cells from the neoplastic MH22a line. Five out of the six animals immunized with the nanoconjugates showed no signs of tumor growth over a period of 24 days. Thus, the feasibility of using gold nanoparticles complexed with antigens derived from MH22a hepatoma cells for anti-tumor vaccination has been demonstrated for the first time. Anti-tumor vaccines based on tumor antigens, currently under development for cancer treatment, could be significantly optimized by incorporating gold nanoparticles as adjuvants.
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