Targeting Glut1-overexpressing MDA-MB-231 cells with 2-deoxy-d-g1ucose modified SPIOs

Glucose transporter (Glut), a cellular transmembrane receptor, plays a key role in cell glucose metabolism and is linked to a poor prognosis in various human cancers. In this study, we prepared γ-Fe2O3 NPs coated with DMSA, in which modified with 2-DG, then γ-Fe2O3@DMSA-DG NPs was constructed. The specific interactions between Glut1-overexpressing tumor cells (MDA-MB-231) and γ-Fe2O3@DMSA-DG NPs were observed using Prussian blue staining and transmission electron microscope (TEM), and found that γ-Fe2O3@DMSA-DG NPs were absorbed targetedly by the cells. Furthermore, the capacity of transporting SPIOs into tumor cells using these γ-Fe2O3@DMSA-DG NPs was evaluated with a 1.5 T clinical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. It was found that the acquired MRI T2 signal intensity of MDA-MB-231cells that were treated with the γ-Fe2O3@DMSA-DG NPs decreased significantly, and it was inhibited by competition with antibody of Glut1. Our results suggest that γ-Fe2O3@DMSA-DG NPs are a useful targeting to Glut1-overexpressing tumor cells in vitro and that γ-Fe2O3@DMSA-DG NPs may serve as a MRI-targeted tumor agent for better tumor imaging.