Targeted drug delivery is one of the key challenges in cancer nanomedicine. Stoichiometric and spatial control over the antibodies placement on the nanomedicine vehicle holds a pivotal role to overcome this key challenge. Here, a DNA tetrahedral is designed with available conjugation sites on its vertices, allowing to bind one, two, or three cetuximab antibodies per DNA nanostructure. This stoichiometrically definable cetuximab conjugated DNA nanostructure shows enhanced targeting on the breast cancer cells, which results with higher overall killing efficacy of the cancer cells.
In the present study, we successfully developed a cetuximab-conjugated modified citrus pectin-chitosan nanoparticles for targeted delivery of curcumin (Cet-MCPCNPs) for the treatment of colorectal cancer. In vitro analyses revealed that nanoparticles were spherical with size of 249.33 ± 5.15 nm, a decent encapsulation efficiency (68.43 ± 2.4%) and a 'smart' drug release profile. 61.37 ± 0.70% of cetuximab was adsorbed to the surface of the nanoparticles. Cellular uptake studies displayed enhanced internalization of Cet-MCPCNPs in Caco-2 (EGFR +ve) cells, which ultimately resulted in a significant reduction in cancer cell propagation. The cell cycle analysis indicated that Cet- MCPCNPs induced cell death in enhanced percentage of Caco-2 cells by undergoing cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase. These data suggest that Cet-MCPCNPs represent a new and promising targeting approach for the treatment of colorectal cancer.