Reactive Oxidative Species in Cancer Following Platinum Nanoparticle Treatment

There has been increasing interest in using metallic nanoparticles, such as gold and silver nanoparticles, as therapeutics for cancer treatments. Specifically, platinum nanoparticles (Pt NPs) have become potential cancer therapeutics due to their significant anticancer effects as well as low toxicity to healthy cells (compared to other types of nanoparticles such as Cisplatin). Previous data has shown that Pt NPs are effective against triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells. TNBC is a very aggressive and metastatic form of breast cancer. Current literature claims that Pt NPs induce cell death by increasing concentrations of reactive oxidative species (ROS) in extracellular cancer environments. We proposed that, due to platinum's antioxidative properties, the addition of Pt NPs would decrease ROS levels. In this study, we measured the effect of several concentrations of Pt NPs on ROS concentrations in various cell lines. We conducted ROS assays on three separate cancer cell linnes, double positive breast cancer (DPBC) cells, triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells, and cisplatin-resistant uterine sarcoma cells, all with differing responses to Pt NPs.

In order to determine the effect of Pt NPs on reactive oxidative species (ROS) concentrations, we used several cell lines including TNBCs, DPBC, and cisplatin-resistant uterine sarcoma. We measured the ROS concentrations after either 1, 3, or 5 days for each cell line after treatment with Pt NPs. There was a significant increase in ROS after day 1 across all cell lines. Across all cell lines, ROS levels decreased after 3 to 5 days even at high concentrations.

The results of this study reflect our hypothesis that Pt NPs decrease ROS levels due to platinum's antioxidative properties. The decrease in ROS levels are indicative of platinum's antioxidant effects, which contradicts current literature. The results and data from this study can aid in the understanding of the mechanism of Pt NPs on ROS levels in TNBC, DPBC, and the cisplatin-resistant uterine sarcoma cells.

Future studies will continue to examine the mechanism of action for Pt NPs in TNBC cells as well as determine their efficacy in mice models.

References: Lopez, A. & McEnnis, K. (2022). Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) encapsulated platinum nanoparticles for cancer treatment. Royal Society of Chemistry

Acknowledgements: This research was supported, mentored, and overseen at the New Jersey Institute of Technology by Ashish Kokkula and Dr. Kathleen McEnnis.