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Published on: July 2, 2020
Intracellular Delivery of Biologically-Active Fungal Metabolite Gliotoxin Using Magnetic Nanoparticles
Laura Comas1, Esther Polo2, M Pilar Domingo3
1Instituto de Carboquímica (ICB-CSIC), 50018 Zaragoza, Spain. lcomasc@hotmail.com.
Abstract:
Gliotoxin (GT), a secondary metabolite produced by Aspergillus molds, has been proposed as a potential anti-tumor agent. Here we have developed a nanoparticle approach to enhance delivery of GT in tumor cells and establish a basis for its potential use as therapeutical drug. GT bound to magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) retained a high anti-tumor activity, correlating with efficient intracellular delivery, which was increased in the presence of glucose. Our results show that the attachment of GT to MNPs by covalent bonding enhances intracellular GT delivery without affecting its biological activity. This finding represents the first step to use this potent anti-tumor agent in the treatment of cancer.
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