Immunohistochemical analyses were performed with formalin‑fixed paraffin‑embedded tumor biopsies to analyze the expression of transferrin receptor (TfR) and the proliferation marker Ki‑67 as possible biomarkers to assess treatment response of tumors to A. annua.
In particular, highly sialylated multi-branched glycans of serotransferrin serum were significantly correlated with poor prognosis and tumor stage in CCA patients.
<i>In vivo</i>, improved bioavailability of tocotrienols were reported with NLCs while marked tumor regression was observed with transferrin-targeted niosomes.
T7, a transferrin receptor-specific peptide, was chosen as the ligand to target the co-delivery system to the tumor cells expressing transferrin receptors.
Transferrin receptor expression is controlled by the amount of iron required by the cell to maintain its metabolism and therefore tumor cells in a highly proliferative state have a high density of transferrin receptors.