Fatemeh Imanparast - Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Mohmood Doosti - Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Amir Amani - Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Malihe Paknejad - Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

One of the main causes of death in women is breast cancer. Breast cancer survivors due to toxicities of therapies, particularly anthracycline chemotherapy, left-sided radiotherapy, and trastuzumab targeted therapy are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease-related death. Critical and initial step of cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis is activation of endothelial cells (ECs). Early detection and rapid regeneration of damaged endothelial cells will be having a very important role in preventing of atherosclerosis. We synthesized peptide- targeted fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) - loaded Poly (DL-lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanoparticles (PLGA NPs) directed against vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) for targeting therapeutic and imaging agents to ECs in inflammatory sites for early detection and rapid regeneration of damaged endothelial cells. FITC- loaded PLGA NPs were synthesized by using double-nozzle electrospraying and conjugated with a peptide antagonist of very late antigen- 4 by ) by 1-Ethyl- 3-[3-dimethylaminopropyl] carbodiimide hydrochloride / N-hydroxysuccinimide (EDC/NHS) as coupling agents. Results of fluorescence microscopy showed that the targeted FITC-loaded NPs are rapidly endocytosis to a greater extent than the untargeted FITC-loaded NPs. Therefore targeted PLGA NPs may have therapeutic and diagnosis applications in prevention of cardiovascular diseases in breast cancer survivors.

VCAM-1; PLGA NPs; Endothelial cells, breast cancer