Understanding Cellular Mechanisms of Breast Cancer Cell Death through Au-nanoparticle-mediated Photothermal Therapy in Diverse Ancestry Cell Lines
By: Angelo Orozco, Daria Chernova
Department: Biology
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Nicole Salazar Velmeshev
Racial disparities in mortality rates of breast cancer and underrepresentation of diverse populations in biomedical research have led to a need for better understanding of how potential therapies can impact disease outcomes in patients with different ancestral backgrounds. Photothermal therapy using gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) is a promising approach for treating solid tumors like breast cancer, but there is a lack of understanding of the cellular mechanisms involved, particularly in cells from diverse ancestries. The objective of this proposal is to determine the cellular mechanism of breast cancer cell death induced by Au NP-based photo-thermal therapy in cell lines from different racial groups. We will use breast cancer cell lines from diverse ancestry groups to determine the cellular mechanism of Au NP-based photo-thermal therapy-induced cell death. The study will investigate whether the therapy induces apoptosis or necrosis and identify any differences in reactions to the therapy between different tumor cell samples. We expect to gain a better understanding of the efficacy of Au NP-based photo-thermal therapy on diverse cell models, which could provide insights for human clinical trials and lead to more personalized treatment approaches.