Delivery of chemo-sensitizing siRNAs to HER2+-breast cancer cells using RNA aptamers

KW Thiel, LI Hernandez, JP Dassie… - Nucleic acids …, 2012 - academic.oup.com
KW Thiel, LI Hernandez, JP Dassie, WH Thiel, X Liu, KR Stockdale, AM Rothman…
Nucleic acids research, 2012academic.oup.com
Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression in breast cancer is associated
with an aggressive phenotype and poor prognosis, making it an appealing therapeutic
target. Trastuzumab, an HER2 antibody-based inhibitor, is currently the leading targeted
treatment for HER2+-breast cancers. Unfortunately, many patients inevitably develop
resistance to the therapy, highlighting the need for alternative targeted therapeutic options.
In this study, we used a novel, cell-based selection approach for isolating 'cell-type …
Abstract
Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression in breast cancer is associated with an aggressive phenotype and poor prognosis, making it an appealing therapeutic target. Trastuzumab, an HER2 antibody-based inhibitor, is currently the leading targeted treatment for HER2+-breast cancers. Unfortunately, many patients inevitably develop resistance to the therapy, highlighting the need for alternative targeted therapeutic options. In this study, we used a novel, cell-based selection approach for isolating ‘cell-type specific’, ‘cell-internalizing RNA ligands (aptamers)’ capable of delivering therapeutic small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to HER2-expressing breast cancer cells. RNA aptamers with the greatest specificity and internalization potential were covalently linked to siRNAs targeting the anti-apoptotic gene, Bcl-2. We demonstrate that, when applied to cells, the HER2 aptamer-Bcl-2 siRNA conjugates selectively internalize into HER2+-cells and silence Bcl-2 gene expression. Importantly, Bcl-2 silencing sensitizes these cells to chemotherapy (cisplatin) suggesting a potential new therapeutic approach for treating breast cancers with HER2+-status. In summary, we describe a novel cell-based selection methodology that enables the identification of cell-internalizing RNA aptamers for targeting therapeutic siRNAs to HER2-expressing breast cancer cells. The future refinement of this technology may promote the widespread use of RNA-based reagents for targeted therapeutic applications.
Oxford University Press