Nanotechnology with X-rays plays an essential role in improving radiation therapy for malignant breast cells

 

Nihad A. Saleh¹, Talib A. Abdul Wahid^2*

¹Babylon University-Science College- Physics Department, Iraq

²Kufa University-Science College- Physics Department, Iraq

 

ABSTRACT:

This research aims to enhance breast radiotherapy by increasing sensitivity enhancement ratio (SER).SER is the ratio of survival cells to initial cells for irradiation without and with NPs. The direct injection of nanoparticles into breast tumor considered a perfect method to increase SER. In this study AuNPS, GdNPs, AgNPs and TiNPs were used as radio-sensitizing agents to increase SER. The contrast agent loaded to breast tumor interacts with x-ray photons whose energy ranged from 2MeV to 20 MeV this led to enhance breast radio-sensitivity by increasing the absorbed dose due to the presence of high absorption coefficient elements. In this research, we get average SER from 10.79 to 13.50 depending on the type of contrast agent and x-ray energy.

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION:

Radiation therapy combined with chemotherapy after surgery can be considered the optimal or complete treatment strategy for cancer [1,2]. Effective radiation therapy of the tumor occurs when applying high-energy X-rays using the technology of fractionation [3]. However, radiation therapy does not always give the required efficiency to treat cancer cells. This is due to several reasons, first the possibility of exit radiation required for the target, and this condition exists specifically in certain areas such as breast and lungs because of the difficulty of treatment in that area and the limited tolerance dose of the organ. Second, the radiation sensitivity of tumor cells is limited. It therefore appears necessary to increase the concentration of radiation within the ionization zone and increase the SER[4].

 

The effective dose of radiation involves the use of high-energy x-rays and the concentration of ionizing radiation in the tumor within the dose- fractionation dose and sometimes this method has limited effect on the treatment process [5].

 

Direct injection technique of nanoparticles with high atomic number, such as AuNPs, GdNPs, AgNPs and TiNPs in the cancer tumor has some practical advantages. First, it focuses the radiation within the desired area and helps increase the absorbed dose in the tumor second to avoid surrounding healthy tissue from exposure to unnecessary radiation [6, 7].

 

Hainfeld JF et al (2008) loaded the tumor with gold nanoparticles then irradiated by x-ray, the study showed Radiotherapy dose enhancement with gold nanoparticles appears to be a promising approach for improved cancer treatment [6].

 

Zheng Y et al and Butterworth K T et al (2008) studied presence of gold nanoparticles in cells and then irradiate the cell they note that the destroyed of DNA in presence gold nanoparticles greater than normal cell[8,9].

Townley et al (2012) the authors report significant and controlled cell death using novel x-ray titanium nanoparticles (NPs) doped with lanthanides. The report showed an incorporation of such materials into tumor tissue can enhance the effect of radiation therapy. The incorporation of gadolinium into the NPs is designed to optimize localized energy absorption from x-ray [10].

 

Xiang-Yu Su et al (2014) they studied enhancement of radiosensitization by gold nanoparticles and silver nanoparticles in cancer radiation therapy, they concluded anomaterials have been widely used in the diagnosis and treatment for disease [11].

 

Hossain M (2015) deduces adding nanoparticles efforts are underway to minimize toxicity of nanoparticles, improve targeting and combine radiation therapy with other therapeutic modalities in order to improve the efficacy of the method for in vivo applications [12].

 

THEORETICAL PART:

The human breast is composed of light elements.Each element has percentage by mass as follow  H (11.5), C(38.7), O(49.8)[13] .So it has small cross section. To increase breast cross section element with high atomic number like gold, gadolinium, silver and titanium should be injected [6,7]. The final cross section is given as follow [14]:

 

 

RESULTS:

By appling the irradiation equation (equation 7) on breast without and with using GdNPs with x-ray photons whose energy range from 2MeV to 20 MeV we get figure shows an increase in the SERdue to presence of GdNPs and SER increases with increased x-ray energyas showen in figure 1.

 

Figure(1): shows breast SER enhancement with precence GdNPs and x-ray energy vary from 2 to 20 (MeV).

 

Then when applying the equation 7 onbreast tumor with presence of AuNPs and high energy x-ray.We noticed there is also an increase in the SER of breast malignant, but more than the presence of GdNPs.This is illustrated in figure 2.

 

Figure (2): shows breast SER enhancement with precence AuNPs and x-ray energy vary from 2 to 20 (MeV).

 

The breast without and with AgNPs gives figure 3. From figure 3 we noticed there is an increase in the SER of breast malignant. It means there is an increase in the number of destroyed cancer cells but by less than the presence of both AuNPs and GdNPs.

 

Figure (3): shows breast SER enhancement with precence AgNPs and x-ray energy vary from 2 to 20 (MeV).

 

At last when we applied the irradiation equation 7 without and with TiNPsit was found that there is an increase in the SER of breast malignant but by less than the presence of AuNPs, GdNPs and AgNPs as shown in figure 4.

 

Figure (4): shows breast SER enhancement with precence TiNPs and x-ray energy vary from 2 to 20 (MeV).

 

According to the SER with presence NPs we can find average SER as shown in Figure 5.

 

Figure 5: show the sensitivity enhancement ratio(SER) in breast malignant when using AuNPs,GdNPs, AgNPsand TiNPs.

 

DISCUSSION:

The element of high atomic number such as Au, Gd, Ag and Ti are working on identifying the target accurately. This is because the cancer cells vasculature is large compared to normal tissue so NPs concentrate inside cancer cells[20-22]. Also it works to increase the dose absorbed into the tumor exclusively zone because ionization region injected with NPs materials with a high mass energy absorption coefficient[23].This can increase the number of destroyed malignant cell compared with the same area without NPs material[24]. High energy x-ray is another factor which helps to enhance radio-sensitivity. To illustrate the interaction of high energy x-ray with high atomic number loaded inside the breast cancerous cells working to increase free radical production. Free radical products of water interaction with x-ray [25,26].where increasing in free radical lead to increase destroying in cancer cells and decrease survival cancer cells as illustrated in figures 1,2,3,4. In this research average SER 13.50 with AuNPs due to the gold has high mass energy absorption coefficient. In the second order comes a GdNPs with atomic number64, average SER 12.95. The third order to AgNPs has atomic number 47, average SER 12.45. TiNPs (22) comes in the last order, average SER 10.79.It's clear that SER depend on atomic number as it illustrated in figure 5 in other words depend on cross section.

 

CONCLUSION:

The insertion of NPs such as Au, Gd, Ag and Ti into the breast tumor and using high energy x-ray are working together to increase the SER. Because of concentrated NPs within the tumor greater than healthy tissue, then healthy tissue can avoid the risk of ionizing radiation.  Figure 5 shows SER was 13.50forAuNPs, 12.95 for GdNPs, 12.45 for AgNPs and 10.79 for TiNPs respectively.

 

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Accepted on 11.10.2017        © RJPT All right reserved

Research J. Pharm. and Tech 2017; 10(12): 4129-4132.