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Updated: Jan 22, 2026

Analysis of Targeted Viral Protein Nanoparticles Delivered to HER2+ Tumors
Published on: June 18, 2013
Paclitaxel-Trastuzumab Mixed Nanovehicle to Target HER2-Overexpressing Tumors
Celia Nieto1, Ariana Centa2, Jesús A Rodríguez-Rodríguez1
1Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Textil, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad de Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain.
Abstract:
Paclitaxel is one of the most widely used chemotherapeutic agents thanks to its effectiveness and broad spectrum of antitumor activity. However, it has a very poor aqueous solubility and a limited specificity. To solve these handicaps, a novel paclitaxel-trastuzumab targeted transport nanosystem has been developed and characterized in this work to specifically treat cancer cells that overexpress the human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2).
Methods:
Alginate and piperazine nanoparticles were synthetized and conjugated with paclitaxel:β-cyclodextrins complexes and trastuzumab. Conjugated nanoparticles (300 nm) were characterized and their internalization in HER2-overexpressing tumor cells was analyzed by immunofluorescence. Its specific antitumor activity was studied in vitro using human cell lines with different levels of HER2-expression.
Results:
In comparison with free paclitaxel:β-cyclodextrins complexes, the developed conjugated nanovehicle presented specificity for the treatment of HER2-overpressing cells, in which it was internalized by endocytosis.
Conclusions:
It seems that potentially avoiding the conventional adverse effects of paclitaxel treatment could be possible with the use of the proposed mixed nanovehicle, which improves its bioavailability and targets HER2-positive cancer cells.
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