Ponente
Descripción
Approximately half of newly diagnosed cancer patients undergo radiotherapy, most
commonly with X-rays. Proton therapy has emerged as an advanced alternative,
offering highly localized energy deposition at the Bragg peak, which reduces
irradiation of healthy tissues and associated toxicity. Technological advances have
enhanced its availability in clinical routine, which has redirected research efforts
toward maximizing the therapeutic potential of proton therapy and improving
patients’ long-term quality of life.
Within this framework, a promising strategy is the combination of proton therapy
with radiosensitizers. Among them, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) stand out because of
their high atomic number, biocompatibility, low toxicity, and natural tendency to
accumulate in tumors, which makes them especially attractive for improving
therapeutic outcomes. Their use has demonstrated radiation enhancement effects in
both in vitro and in vivo studies. However, the underlying mechanisms responsible
for the observed increase in effectiveness under proton irradiation remain poorly
understood, underscoring the need for further research to enable an efficient.
This work is being conducted by a multidisciplinary collaboration involving physicists
from the Universidad de Sevilla (US) and the Instituto de Física Corpuscular (IFIC),
biochemists from the Universitat de València (UV), and biologists from the Centro
Andaluz de Biología Molecular y Regenerativa (CABIMER). Irradiations of cell samples
were carried out at the Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (Seville, Spain) using a
Cyclone 18/9 cyclotron (Ion Beam Applications, IBA, Belgium), which can accelerate
protons and deuterons to 18 and 9 MeV, respectively. Significant efforts have been
devoted to improving experimental conditions through the development and
implementation of new technologies, such as a robotic arm for remote sample
handling, which facilitate data acquisition and enable a greater number of
irradiations per experimental campaign. The study investigates the radiosensitizing
effects of 50 nm diameter gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in HeLa cells irradiated with
protons. A comprehensive set of assays, including clonogenic survival assays and
immunofluorescence analyses with Hela cells, was performed to assess cell survival
and DNA damage response in the presence and absence of AuNPs. Preliminary
findings support the potential of AuNPs as effective radiosensitizers in proton
therapy.
