"Studded" implant against breast cancer recurrence
According to statistics, one in eight women in the United States develops breast cancer during their lifetime. In most cases, the treatment of this disease involves surgical removal of the tumor followed by reconstructive surgery, often consisting in the implantation of an implant. Unfortunately, about 20% of the treated patients develop secondary tumors.
Researchers at Brown University, working under the guidance of Associate Professor Thomas Webster, have developed an implant for breast reconstruction, the special surface of which suppresses the vital activity of epithelial lung carcinoma cells, while stimulating the proliferation of healthy breast epithelial cells. The secret of the implant surface, made of a copolymer of lactic and glycolic acids – a biodegradable polymer approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – lies in the smallest "nanoscips" covering it with a height of 23 nm (picture B).
Testing using cell cultures showed that, in comparison with the usual smooth surface of the copolymer of lactic and glycolic acids (A), as well as with surfaces specially formed for comparison, covered with spikes 300 and 400 nm high (C and D), a surface with 23-nanometer spikes has a much more pronounced negative effect on malignant cells. It simultaneously stimulates their apoptosis and reduces the rate of proliferation, as well as the activity of synthesis of vascular epithelial growth factor, without which it is impossible to form a vascular network that ensures tumor growth. At the same time, compared with all control surfaces, the tested surface provided an increase in the level of proliferation of healthy breast epithelial cells by 24%.
The mechanism of this action is unclear, but Webster suggests that it is based on the lower plasticity of malignant cells and their inability to adhere to an uneven surface. In the near future, researchers plan to investigate the exact mechanisms of the phenomenon they demonstrated and search for other materials with similar properties. They believe that in the future polymers with a nanostructured surface will find wide application in regenerative antitumor therapy.
The article by Lijuan Zhang and Thomas J Webster Poly-lactic-glycolic-acid surface nanotopographies selectively decrease breast adenocarcinoma cell functions is published in the journal Nanotechnology.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on the materials of Brown University: 'Bed-of-nails' breast implant deters cancer cells.
26.03.2012