Polymeric nanoparticle-based activatable near-infrared nanosensor for protease determination in vivo.

Lee, Seulki; Ryu, Ju Hee; Park, Kyeongsoon; Lee, Aeju; Lee, Seung-Young; Youn, In-Chan; Ahn, Cheol-Hee; Yoon, Soon Man et al. · Nano Lett · 2009

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

We report here a new protease activatable strategy based on a polymer nanoparticle platform. This nanosensor delivers chemically labeled matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-activatable fluorogenic peptides to the specific MMPs of interest in vivo. Intravenous administration of the nanosensor in an MMP-positive SCC-7 xenograft tumor and a colon cancer mouse model verified the enzyme specificity of the nanosensor in vivo. The design platform of the nanosensor is flexible and can be fine-tuned for a wide array of applications such as the detection of biomarkers, early diagnosis of disease, and monitoring therapeutic efficacy.

Medical subject headings