Our research objective is to develop superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles and silicon nanoparticles as radiosensitizers for cancer therapy. After internalization by breast tumor cells and irradiation with X-rays, the nanoparticles were observed to enhance the oxidative stress in tumor cells. While silicon nanoparticles increase the reactive oxygen species production under X-ray treatment due to their incompletely oxidized surface, positively charged amino-functionalized silicon nanoparticles enhance the formation of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species formation because of their direct interaction with the mitochondrial membrane. On the other hand, uncoated and citrate-coated superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles were found to increase the reactive oxygen species formation in X-ray treated tumor cells via two particular surface features, being, first, the leakage of iron ions and second, the catalytic activity of nanoparticle surfaces. Both may initiate the Haber-Weiss and Fenton reaction.

Fil: Dell'Arciprete, Maria Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico la Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicadas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; Argentina

Fil: Gonzalez, Monica Cristina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico la Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicadas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; Argentina

Fil: Distel, Luitpold V. R.. Universitat Erlangen-Nuremberg; Alemania

Fil: Neuhuber, Winfried . Universitat Erlangen-Nuremberg; Alemania

Fil: Klein, Stefanie. Universitat Erlangen-Nuremberg; Alemania

Fil: Kryschi, Carola. Universitat Erlangen-Nuremberg; Alemania

Fil: Wegmann, Marc. Universitat Erlangen-Nuremberg; Alemania

Fil: Sommer, Anja. Universitat Erlangen-Nuremberg; Alemania

Fil: Ott, Susanne. Universitat Erlangen-Nuremberg; Alemania