Inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis by dimercaptosuccinic acid modified Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles combined with nontoxic concentration of bortezomib and gambogic acid in RPMI-8226 cells

The purpose of this study was to determine the potential benefits of combination therapy using dimercaptosuccinic acid modified iron oxide (DMSA-Fe3O4) magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) combined with nontoxic concentration of bortezomib (BTZ) and gambogic acid (GA) on multiple myeloma (MM) RPMI-8226 cells and possible underlying mechanisms. The effects of BTZ-GA-loaded MNP-Fe3O4 (BTZ-GA/MNPs) on cell proliferation were assessed by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,4,-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) method. Cell cycle and apoptosis were detected using the terminal deoxyribonucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-mediated biotin-16-dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) assay and flow cytometry (FCM). Furthermore, DMSA-Fe3O4 MNPs were characterized in terms of distribution, apoptotic morphology, and cellular uptake by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and 4,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining. Subsequently, the effect of BTZ-GA/MNPs combination on PI3K/Akt activation and apoptotic-related protein were appraised by Western blotting. MTT assay and hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining were applied to elevate the functions of BTZ-GA/MNPs combination on the tumor xenograft model and tumor necrosis. The results of this study revealed that the majority of MNPs were quasi-spherical and the MNPs taken up by cells were located in the endosome vesicles of cytoplasm. Nontoxic concentration of BTZ-GA/MNPs increased G2/M phase cell cycle arrest and induced apoptosis in RPMI-8226 cells. Furthermore, the combination of BTZ-GA/MNPs activated phosphorylated Akt levels, Caspase-3, and Bax expression, and down-regulated the PI3K and Bcl-2 levels significantly. Meanwhile, the in vivo tumor xenograft model indicated that the treatment of BTZ-GA/MNPs decreased the tumor growth and volume and induced cell apoptosis and necrosis. These findings suggest that chemotherapeutic agents polymerized MNPs-Fe3O4 with GA could serve as a better alternative for targeted therapeutic approaches to treat multiple myeloma.