Effect of Fe3O4Nanoparticles on Skin Tumor Cells and Dermal Fibroblasts

Abstract

Iron oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles have been used in many biomedical approaches. The toxicity of Fe3O4nanoparticles on mammalian cells was published recently. Though, little is known about the viability of human cells after treatment with Fe3O4nanoparticles. Herein, we examined the toxicity, production of reactive oxygen species, and invasive capacity after treatment of human dermal fibroblasts (HDF) and cells of the squamous tumor cell line (SCL-1) with Fe3O4nanoparticles. These nanoparticles had an average size of 65 nm. Fe3O4nanoparticles induced oxidative stress via generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and subsequent initiation of lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, the question was addressed of whether Fe3O4nanoparticles affect myofibroblast formation, known to be involved in tumor invasion. Herein, Fe3O4nanoparticles prevent the expression alpha-smooth muscle actin and therefore decrease the number of myofibroblastic cells. Moreover, our data showin vitrothat concentrations of Fe3O4nanoparticles, which are nontoxic for normal cells, partially reveal a ROS-triggered cytotoxic but also a pro-invasive effect on the fraction of squamous cancer cells surviving the treatment with Fe3O4nanoparticles. The data herein show that the Fe3O4nanoparticles appear not to be adequate for use in therapeutic approaches against cancer cells, in contrast to recently published data with cerium oxide nanoparticles.