Effect of mesoporous silica nanoparticles co‑loading with 17‑AAG and Torin2 on anaplastic thyroid carcinoma by targeting VEGFR2

Anaplastic thyroid cancer: Genetic roles, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy

Anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) stands as the most formidable form of thyroid malignancy, presenting a persistent challenge in clinical management. Recent years have witnessed a gradual unveiling of the intricate genetic underpinnings governing ATC through next-generation sequencing. The emergence of this genetic landscape has paved the way for the exploration of targeted therapies and immunotherapies in clinical trials. Despite these strides, the precise mechanisms governing ATC pathogenesis and the identification of efficacious treatments demand further investigation. Our comprehensive review stems from an extensive literature search focusing on the genetic implications, notably the pivotal MAPK and PI3K-AKT-mTOR signaling pathways, along with targeted therapies and immunotherapies in ATC. Moreover, we screen and summarize the advances and challenges in the current diagnostic approaches for ATC, including the invasive tissue sampling represented by fine needle aspiration and core needle biopsy, immunohistochemistry, and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography. We also investigate enormous studies on the prognosis of ATC and outline independent prognostic factors for future clinical assessment and therapy for ATC. By synthesizing this literature, we aim to encapsulate the evolving landscape of ATC oncology, potentially shedding light on novel pathogenic mechanisms and avenues for therapeutic exploration.

Efficient delivery of anlotinib and radioiodine by long circulating nano-capsules for active enhanced suppression of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma

131I therapy is clinically unfeasible for anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC), due to lack of active targets and ATC's resistance to radiation. Novel radionuclide-labeled targeted nano-drug delivery systems have exhibited the potential of prominent tumor imaging and remedy. Capitalizing on recent research achievements in nanotechnology and nuclear medicine, we sought to develop a radiolabeled nano-drug, which could specifically accumulate in ATCs via tumor-selective targeted delivery system and which could treat the tumors with both targeted and radionuclide therapeutics. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and mutant P53 expressions were positive in 80% and 60% of patients with ATC, respectively. Herein, core-shell nanoparticles-based poly (ethyleneglycol)-crosslinker (PEG-CL) was fabricated, by encapsulating bovine serum albumin (BSA) inside the core and an enzyme with various tyrosine residues for 131I radiolabeling, and by loading anlotinib, a multi-kinase inhibitor which can site-selectively target overexpressed EGFR in ATC cells and which also suppresses angiogenesis, onto the PEG-CL shell surface. The Anlotinib-BSA nano-capsule (nBSA) showed a mostly uniform size distribution centering at 21-23 nm, and the nano-drug had a characteristic absorption peak at the wavelength of 325 nm. The Anlotinib-nBSA had a high labeling efficiency with the radiochemical purity being approximately 100%. The cellular uptake efficiency of Anlotinib-nBSA-131I was much higher than that of free 131I in both 8305C (3.6% vs 0.0%) and C643 (7.0% vs 0.1%; with a higher EGFR expression level) ATC cell lines. Anlotinib-nBSA-131I showed the strongest cytotoxicity against ATC cells with different concentrations of anlotinib, and induced the highest rate of apoptosis (C643 cells, 81.7%). The nanoparticles could actively target tumor surface with anlotinib exhibiting enhanced radio-sensitization effects by functionally upregulating P53 and Bax. In vivo SPECT/CT imaging showed that the concentration of Anlotinib-nBSA-125I in tumors peaked at 24 h, and the intense signal persisted for at least one week. Anlotinib-nBSA-131I showed the strongest tumor inhibition effects in tumor-bearing mice, with no evident pathological changes observed. Together, the optimal nanoparticles co-loading anlotinib and 131I satisfactorily demonstrated efficient drug delivery and prominent antitumor effects both in vitro and in vivo, without obvious in vivo bio-toxicity. Our innovation could offer novel effective strategies for targeted management of ATC, a highly-aggressive disease with dismal prognosis.

Current Application of Nanoparticle Drug Delivery Systems to the Treatment of Anaplastic Thyroid Carcinomas

Anaplastic thyroid carcinomas (ATCs) are a rare subtype of thyroid cancers with a low incidence but extremely high invasiveness and fatality. The treatment of ATCs is very challenging, and currently, a comprehensive individualized therapeutic strategy involving surgery, radiotherapy (RT), chemotherapy, BRAF/MEK inhibitors (BRAFi/MEKi) and immunotherapy is preferred. For ATC patients in stage IVA/IVB, a surgery-based comprehensive strategy may provide survival benefits. Unfortunately, ATC patients in IVC stage barely get benefits from the current treatment. Recently, nanoparticle delivery of siRNAs, targeted drugs, cytotoxic drugs, photosensitizers and other agents is considered as a promising anti-cancer treatment. Nanoparticle drug delivery systems have been mainly explored in the treatment of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). With the rapid development of drug delivery techniques and nanomaterials, using hybrid nanoparticles as the drug carrier to deliver siRNAs, targeted drugs, immune drugs, chemotherapy drugs and phototherapy drugs to ATC patients have become a hot research field. This review aims to describe latest findings of nanoparticle drug delivery systems in the treatment of ATCs, thus providing references for the further analyses.

Engineering a HEK-293T exosome-based delivery platform for efficient tumor-targeting chemotherapy/internal irradiation combination therapy

Exosomes are nanoscale monolayer membrane vesicles that are actively endogenously secreted by mammalian cells. Currently, multifunctional exosomes with tumor-targeted imaging and therapeutic potential have aroused widespread interest in cancer research. Herein, we developed a multifunctional HEK-293T exosome-based targeted delivery platform by engineering HEK-293T cells to express a well-characterized exosomal membrane protein (Lamp2b) fused to the αv integrin-specific iRGD peptide and tyrosine fragments. This platform was loaded with doxorubicin (Dox) and labeled with radioiodine-131 (131I) using the chloramine-T method. iRGD exosomes showed highly efficient targeting and Dox delivery to integrin αvβ3-positive anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) cells as demonstrated by confocal imaging and flow cytometry in vitro and an excellent tumor-targeting capacity confirmed by single-photon emission computed tomography-computed tomography after labeling with 131I in vivo. In addition, intravenous injection of this vehicle delivered Dox and 131I specifically to tumor tissues, leading to significant tumor growth inhibition in an 8505C xenograft mouse model, while showing biosafety and no side effects. These as-developed multifunctional exosomes (denoted as Dox@iRGD-Exos-131I) provide novel insight into the current treatment of ATC and hold great potential for improving therapeutic efficacy against a wide range of integrin αvβ3-overexpressing tumors.

Nanoparticles: Promising Auxiliary Agents for Diagnosis and Therapy of Thyroid Cancers

Simple Summary

Thyroid cancer (TC) is rare relative to cancers of many other organs (breast, prostate, lung, and colon). The majority of TCs are differentiated tumors that are relatively easy to treat and have a good prognosis. However, for anaplastic TC, a rapidly growing and aggressive tumor, treatment is suboptimal because the effective drugs cause severe adverse effects. Drug delivery by nanocarriers can improve treatment by reducing side effects. This can either be mediated through better retention in the tumor tissue due to size (passive targeting) or through the attachment of specific molecules that zero in on the cancer cells (active targeting). Nanoparticles are already used for diagnosis and imaging of TC. For unresectable anaplastic TC, nanoparticle-based treatments, less suitable for deeply located cancers, could be useful, based on low-intensity focused ultrasound and near-infrared irradiation. All potential applications of nanoparticles in TC are still in the preclinical phase.

Abstract

Cancers of the endocrine system are rare. The majority are not highly malignant tumors. Thyroid cancer (TC) is the most common endocrine cancer, with differentiated papillary and follicular tumors occurring more frequently than the more aggressive poorly differentiated and anaplastic TC. Nanoparticles (NP) (mainly mesoporous silica, gold, carbon, or liposomes) have been developed to improve the detection of biomarkers and routine laboratory parameters (e.g., thyroid stimulating hormone, thyroglobulin, and calcitonin), tumor imaging, and drug delivery in TC. The majority of drug-loaded nanocarriers to be used for treatment was developed for anaplastic tumors because current treatments are suboptimal. Further, doxorubicin, sorafenib, and gemcitabine treatment can be improved by nanotherapy due to decreased adverse effects. Selective delivery of retinoic acid to TC cells might improve the re-differentiation of de-differentiated TC. The use of carbon NPs for the prevention of parathyroid damage during TC surgery does not show a clear benefit. Certain technologies less suitable for the treatment of deeply located cancers may have some potential for unresectable anaplastic carcinomas, namely those based on low-intensity focused ultrasound and near-infrared irradiation. Although some of these approaches yielded promising results in animal studies, results from clinical trials are currently lacking.