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Updated: Dec 8, 2025
Monitoring of Nanodrug Accumulation in Murine Breast Cancer Metastases
Published on: August 23, 2024
Functionalized nanoparticles with targeted antibody to enhance imaging of breast cancer in vivo
Jesse S Chen1, Jingwen Chen2, Somnath Bhattacharjee1
1Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Allergy, Michigan Nanotechnology Institute for Medicine and Biological Sciences, University of Michigan, 109 Zina Pitcher Place, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA.
Background:
Targeted contrast nanoparticles for breast tumor imaging facilitates early detection and improves treatment efficacy of breast cancer. This manuscript reports the development of an epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) specific, bi-modal, dendrimer conjugate to enhance computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of HER-2-positive breast cancer. This material employs generation 5 poly(amidoamine) dendrimers, encapsulated gold nanoparticles, chelated gadolinium, and anti-human HER-2 antibody to produce the nanoparticle contrast agent.
Results:
Testing in two mouse tumor models confirms this contrast agent's ability to image HER-2 positive tumors. Intravenous injection of this nanoparticle in mice bearing HER-2 positive mammary tumors significantly enhances MRI signal intensity by ~ 20% and improves CT resolution and contrast by two-fold. Results by flow cytometry and confocal microscopy validate the specific targeting of the conjugate and its internalization in human HER-2 positive cells.
Conclusion:
These results demonstrate that this nanoparticle conjugate can efficiently target and image HER-2 positive tumors in vivo and provide a basis for the development of this diagnostic tool for early detection, metastatic assessment and therapeutic monitoring of HER-2 positive cancers.
