Synthesis and enzymatic cleavage of dual-ligand quantum dots

Site directed therapy promises to minimize treatment-limiting systemic effects associated with cytotoxic agents that have no specificity for pathologic tissues. One general strategy is to target cell surface receptors uniquely presented on particular tissues. Highly specific in vivo targeting of an emerging neoplasm through a single molecular recognition mechanism has not generally been successful. Nonspecific binding and specific binding to non-target cells compromise the therapeutic index of small molecule, ubiquitous cancer targeting ligands. In this work, we have designed and fabricated a nanoparticle (NP) construct that could potentially overcome the current limitations of targeted in vivo delivery. Quantum dots (QDs) were functionalized with a poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) modified to enable specific cleavage by matrix metalloprotease-7 (MMP-7). The QDs were further functionalized with folic acid, a ligand for a cell surface receptor that is overexpressed in many tumors, but also expressed in some normal tissues. The nanomolecular construct is designed so that the PEG initially conceals the folate ligand and construct binding to cells is inhibited. MMP-7 activated peptide cleavage and subsequent unmasking of the folate ligand occurs only near tumor tissue, resulting in a proximity activated (PA) targeting system. QDs functionalized with both the MMP-7 cleavable substrate and folic acid were successfully synthesized and characterized. The proteolytic capability of the dual ligand QD construct was quantitatively assessed by fluorometric analysis and compared to a QD construct functionalized with only the PA ligand. The dual ligand PA nanoparticles studied here exhibit significant susceptibility to cleavage by MMP-7 at physiologically relevant conditions. The capacity to autonomously convert a biopassivated nanostructure to a tissue-specific targeted delivery agent in vivo represents a paradigm change for site-directed therapies.