Cytomechanical modifications induced by drug-loaded carriers uptaken by breast cancer cells

The novel opportunities offered by the nanotechnologies have attracted great interest in the development of novel biomaterials for targeted drug delivery in cancer research. The desired features of pharmaceutical drug delivery for intravenous administration are their small size, biodegradability, high drug content, prolonged circulation in the blood and the ability to target required areas. In this work we have compared efficacy of different type of carriers having complementary properties for pharmaceutical delivery in cancer therapy. Drug nano-colloids encapsulated by combination of layer by layer (LbL) techniques and ultrasonication, phytochemical encapsulated artificial oleosomes and drug-loading clay/carbon nanotubes have been used for uptake into breast cancer cells. Analysis of viscoelastic response of neoplastic cells induced by cargo-carriers uptake has been carried out by a combination of high resolution optical and scanning force microscopy techniques. Furthermore, the effects of drug-reservoir carriers on the cytoskeleton (re)organisation of neoplastic cells were further investigated by confocal microscopy using different fluorescent probes.