Cytotoxicity and Selectivity in Skin Cancer by SapC-DOPS Nanovesicles

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Nanotechnology
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and melanoma are aggressive skin cancers with high mortality rates.
• Current treatments can lack specificity, affecting healthy cells.
• There is a need for targeted therapies to improve skin cancer treatment outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate cancer-selective nanovesicles (SapC-DOPS) for treating skin cancer.
• To assess the cytotoxic effects of SapC-DOPS on various skin cancer cell lines and normal skin cells.
• To investigate the in vivo efficacy of SapC-DOPS in reducing tumor size.

Main Methods:

• SapC-DOPS nanovesicles were assembled using lysosomal protein saposin C (SapC) and phospholipid dioloylphosphatidylserine (DOPS).
• Cytotoxicity was evaluated using MTT assays on skin tumor cell lines (SCC, SK-MEL-28, MeWo) and normal skin cell lines (NIK, HFC).
• In vivo efficacy was tested on subcutaneous skin tumor xenografts, with tumor volume reduction measured after SapC-DOPS treatment.

Main Results:

• SapC-DOPS nanovesicles demonstrated selective cytotoxicity against skin cancer cells, inducing apoptotic cell death.
• Normal, untransformed skin cells remained unaffected by the nanovesicle treatment.
• In vivo studies showed a 79.4% reduction in tumor size in animals treated with SapC-DOPS compared to controls within 4 days.
• TUNEL staining confirmed apoptosis induction in xenograft tumor sections.

Conclusions:

• SapC-DOPS nanovesicles represent a promising targeted therapy for skin cancer.
• The selective induction of apoptosis by SapC-DOPS offers a potential strategy for effective skin cancer treatment.
• Further research into SapC-DOPS could lead to improved clinical outcomes for patients with skin cancer.