Most primary brain tumors are managed by maximal safe resection followed by chemotherapy and radiation to treat residual and potentially infiltrative tumor cells. However, these adjuvant approaches do not effectively treat the tumor-invaded brain regions due to an intact blood-brain barrier (BBB) that restricts efficient drug penetration or a high risk of toxicity to nearby neural structures. Increasing clinical evidence indicates that the strength of the BBB in protecting brain tumors from exposure to circulating drugs is maintained by not only the intact tight junctions between endothelial cells, but also a broad range of ATP-bind cassette (ABC) drug efflux transporters on endothelial and cancer cells. Our central hypothesis is that sub-cytotoxic photodynamic priming (PDP), which modulates both the tight junction proteins and ABC transporters, can offer a more specific and less disruptive strategy to deliver drugs into the brain tumor effectively. Leveraging cutting-edge nanotechnology, optical imaging and computational modeling, three specific aims will test our hypothesis using orthotopic patient-derived xenograft rat models of glioblastoma.
Aim 1 will unravel the molecular impact of nanotechnology-assisted PDP on the tight junction proteins and ABC efflux transporters of brain endothelial cells and cancer cells.
Aim 2 will employ fluorescence imaging to monitor nanomedicine delivery and establish a physiologically based pharmacokinetic model.
Aim 3 will apply image-based pharmacokinetic modeling to guide the initiation of PDP for bidirectional modulation of drug transport in vivo. Creation of such a pipeline to translate fundamental discoveries into potential therapeutics stands to dramatically accelerate the paradigm shift from standard cytotoxic procedures to a gentler photochemical approach that will revolutionize glioblastoma treatment. The principles and nanotechnology developed here will be adaptable to understanding and treating a broad range of central nervous system disorders, such as neuro-degenerative malignancies and spinal cord disease. !
Glioblastoma has a poor prognosis due to an intact blood-brain barrier (BBB) and ATP-bind cassette (ABC) efflux transporters that limit chemotherapeutics reaching diffusely invading glioma cells beyond the surgical margin. We are interested in using a safe and selective photochemical technique to modulate the BBB tight junctions and ABC transporters simultaneously, and to visualize the enhanced movements of nanomedicine into the brain tumor for superior treatment outcomes. The translational technology and the nanoplatform developed here will be adaptable to treating a broad range of central nervous system disorders.
