RESEARCH TOPICS

Metastasis mechanisms and novel anti-cancer therapeutics.

3B: Development of anti-bladder cancer therapeutics

3rd Generation Agents: US Patent 10450349 

Artificial Multivalent Ligands: High specificity, strong binders, self-clustering. Less amount needed of a more soluble and stable ligand, with cheaper and simpler production process. (FAP-related Ligand FRL was the prototype) 

A. FRL colocalizes with FBN. T24 human bladder tumor cells grown on coverslips for 24h were incubated with FRL, washed, fixed and immunostained with anti-His6 (red) and anti-FBN (green) antibodies. Arrows point some areas of colocalization. B. FRL internalization. T24 cells expressing GFP-tagged constitutively activated Rab5Q79L mutant (labeling enlarged endosomes) were grown on coverslips. Therefore, FRL signal locate inside GFP-positive structures has been internalized by the tumor cells. Arrows point to some to internalized FRL. C. GFP-Rab5Q79L expressing cells were incubated with fluorescent nanoparticles decorated with FRL (FRL-NP). Internalized FRL-NP was detected as signal detected inside of GFP-labeled structures (Arrows).