Target-specific delivery of doxorubicin to human glioblastoma cell line via ssDNA aptamer

Targeted drug delivery approaches have been implementing significant therapeutic gain for cancer treatment since last decades. Aptamers are one of the mostly used and highly selective targeting agents for cancer cells. Herein, we address a nano-sized targeted drug delivery approach adorned with A-172 glioblastoma cell-line-specific single stranded DNA (ssDNA) aptamer in which the chemotherapeutic agent Doxorubicin (DOX) had been conjugated. DNA aptamer, GMT-3, was previously selected for specific recognition of glioblastoma and represented many advantageous characteristics for drug targeting purposes. Flow cytometry analysis proved the binding efficiency of the specific aptamer to tumour cell lines. Cell-type-specific toxicity of GMT-3:DOX complex was showed by XTT assay and terminated cytotoxic effects were screened for both target cell and a control breast cancer cell line. The result of this contribution demonstrated the potential utility of GMT-3 aptamer-mediated therapeutic drug transportation in the treatment of gliomas specifically. It was concluded that aptamer-mediated drug delivery can be applied successfully for clinical use.