Near IR Fluorescent Polystyrene/Albumin Core/Shell Nanoparticles for Specific Targeting of Colonic Neoplasms

Previous studies have shown that albumin has a high affinity towards tumours, and, as a result, many drug/albumin conjugates, as well as albumin nanoparticles, have been studied as antineoplastic drug carriers. Numerous studies have also shown the high affinity of cyanine dyes for albumin. This work combines the former and the latter for the preparation of NIR fluorescent and photostable nanoparticles as diagnostic biomaterials. Tumour-specific labelling by NIR fluorescent polystyrene/albumin core/shell nanoparticles is demonstrated, without the presence of additional targeting moieties, and they possess great potential for clinical applications. Near IR fluorescent core/shell polystyrene/HSA nanoparticles are prepared and characterised for in vivo diagnostics. The potential of the nanoparticles for use in early diagnosis of colon cancer is demonstrated with specific tumour labelling of LS174T, SW480 and HT29 human colon adenocarcinoma cell lines, using in ovo (chicken embryo) and in vivo (mouse) models.