CC BY
17LMI-I-21
Nuclear nanomedicine: laser ablated nanoparticles in new generation radiopharmaceuticals
I.N. Zavestovskaya1, A. Kabashin2, V. Petriev3 1MEPHI, BHSPh, Moscow, Russian Federation 2Aix-Marseille Univ. - CNRS, Laser Lab, Marseille, France
3National Medical Research Centre of radiology of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Nuclear Medicine, Obninsk, Russian Federation
The results in nuclear nanomedicine which utilizes nanoparticles (NPs) as carriers of radionuclides are presented. We propose silicon NPs (Si*NPs) synthesized by pulsed laser ablation in liquids. One can use these methods to make stable colloidal dispersions of Si*NPs in both organic and aqueous media, which are suitable for a multitude of applications across the important fields of health care. Size tailoring allows production of Si*NPs with efficient photoluminescence that can be tuned across a broad spectral range from the visible to near-IR by varying particle size and surface functionalization. These applications encompass several types of bioimaging and various therapies, including photodynamic therapy, RF thermal therapy, and radiotherapy. The uniqueness of such Si*NPs is based on their biodegradability, which makes possible rapid elimination of these structures from the organism within several days under absence of any toxic effects.
Synthesized nanoparticles were tested as carries for promising radionuclides, as well as sensitizers in radiation therapy. We demonstrate the possibility for fast PEGylization and conjugation of laser-synthesized Si*NPs with Rhenium-188 (188Re) radionuclide, which is one of most promising generator-type therapeutic beta-emitters with the energy of positron emission of 1.96 MeV (16.7%) and 2.18 MeV (80%) and half-decay time of 17 hours. We show that such conjugates can efficiently deliver the radionuclide through the blood stream and retain it in the tumor region. We also show that Si NPs ensure excellent retention of 188Re in tumor, not possible with the salt, which enables one to maximize therapeutic effect, as well as a complete time-delayed conjugate bioelimination. Finally, our tests on rat survival demonstrate excellent therapeutic effect (72% survival compared to 0% of the control group). Combined with a series of imaging and therapeutic functionalities based on unique intrinsic properties of Si*NPs, the proposed biodegradable complex promises a major advancement of nuclear nanomedicine.
