Specific targeting of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line CNE1 by C225-conjugated ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide particles with magnetic resonance imaging

An accurate definition of clinical target volume (CTV) is essential for the application of radiotherapy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) treatment. A novel epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-targeting contrast agent (C225-USPIO) was designed by conjugating ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide (USPIO) nanoparticles with cetuximab (C225), to non-invasively define the CTV of tumor. The immunobinding activity of C225-USPIO to NPC cell line CNE1 was confirmed by flow cytometry and immunofluorescence. The time-dependent accumulation of C225-USPIO in CNE1 cells was evaluated using Prussian blue staining. Targeted internalization and subcellular localization of C225-USPIO was confirmed by transmission electron microscope. The results indicated that C225-USPIO specifically bound to EGFR on the surface of CNE1 cells and was taken up into the cell. The uptake of C225-USPIO by CNE1 cells increased significantly with time, when compared with human IgG-USPIO. In addition, 4.7 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed that C225-USPIO had a capacity to accumulate in the CNE1 cells, with a resultant marked decrease in MRI T2-weighted signal intensity over time. These findings imply that C225-USPIO has the potential as an MRI contrast agent and can be employed to non-invasively detect early-stage NPC with EGFR overexpression. This provides sufficient theoretical basis for commencing in vivo experiments with the compound.