Robust anticancer efficacy of Naja haje venom-loaded silica nanoparticles against triple-negative breast cancer xenografts in a preclinical rat model

Sep 21, 2026

Breast cancer is an aggressive disease with limited options, and triple-negative breast cancer presents a particularly difficult clinical challenge. This preclinical rat study evaluates the anticancer effects of Egyptian cobra Naja haje venom alone and when loaded onto silica nanoparticle delivery systems. Animals were assigned to five groups receiving different venom doses, with measurements including inflammatory cytokines, tumor markers, RNA extraction, qRT-PCR gene expression, and histopathology. Venom-loaded nanoparticle treatment improved inflammatory cytokines and tumor markers, increased tumor-suppressor gene expression, and enhanced apoptosis and necrosis.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time28 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background, Aim

Methods

Results, Conclusion

Introduction

Triple-negative breast cancer challenges

Snake venom bioactive mechanisms

Nanoparticle delivery for cancer therapy

Open Veterinary Journal,(2024), Vol. 14(12): 3552-3562 ISSN: 2226-4485 (Print) Research Article ISSN: 2218-6050 (Online) DOI: 10.5455/OVJ.2024.v14.i12.37 | Submitted: 16/10/2024 Accepted: 24/11/2024 Published: 31/12/2024
Robust anticancer efficacy of Naja haje venom-loaded silica nanoparticles against triple-negative breast cancer xenografts in a preclinical rat model
NabilA. Soliman* , AmrA. Shalaby, Heba Allah Mohamed, Sara M. AbdelkaremAlashqar and
Mohamed Ahmed Ammar
Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Zagazig University, Sharkia, Egypt | | | --- | --- | | ABSTRACT
Background: Breast cancer, a prevalent disease affecting women globally, is particularly aggressive and has limited treatment options.
Aim: Snake venom, containing active chemicals, has shown potential in medicine.
Methods: The study investigates the anticancer effect of Egyptian cobra Naja haje venom alone and in combination with Nanoparticles (NP) on TNBC in vivo. The study involved dividing experimental animals into five groups, each with 10 rats, each treated with different doses of crude venom, G2 and G3, respectively. The study involved loading venom onto NP-based delivery systems, measuring inflammatory cytokines and tumor markers, extracting RNA, realtime qRT-PCR gene expression, and histopathological examination of breast tissue.
Results: The study involved administering Naja haje crude venom at higher (1/5 LD50) and lower (1/20 LD50) dose levels in groups G2 and G3, respectively.
Conclusion: The study found that venom treatment in groups G4 and G5 significantly improved inflammatory cytokine and tumor markers levels, increased expression of tumor-suppressor genes, and increased apoptosis and necrosis. Keywords: Triple negative breast cancer, Naja haje venom, Anticancer, Inflammatory cytokines, NPs. | | | Introduction
Breast cancer (BC) is the second most common cause of cancer-related mortality among women. (Chan and Moris, 2006) . As reported by (Shah et al., 2014) classifications for BC have been created in an effort to treat patients more successfully. Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), is an extremely truculent subtype of BC (Zhu et al., 2023) . It is more common in young women compared to other BC subtypes, and it is linked to higher cancer risk and death (Dent et al., 2007) . On the surface of TNBC, there is no expression of the progesterone, estrogen, or HER2 receptors (Borri and Granaglia, 2021) . Considering this fact, TNBC represents a unique and challenging entity within BC due to its aggressive behavior, limited treatment options, and poorer prognosis compared to other subtypes (Wein and Loi, 2017) . Although chemotherapy is the main form of treatment for patients with TNBC, the effectiveness of chemotherapy for TNBC is still limited (Yi et al., 2021) .
Animal poisons and venoms from a variety of species, including snakes, scorpions, cone snails, bees, and wasps, have been extensively researched overtime due to their potential as a significant source of bioactive chemicals (Harvey, 2014). A wealth of active | pharmacological proteins and peptides have been reported to be found in animal venoms (Mohamed et al., 2019) . For many years numerous studies have demonstrated the significant effect of cobra venom in providing relief from various types of pain, including that associated with cancer, neuralgia, and joint-related disorders (Liang et al., 2015) . Predominately snake venom comprises various polypeptide toxins and enzymes manifesting diverse pharmacological and biological activities contra virus, bacteria, and tumor (Salama et al., 2018; Roy and Bharadvaja, 2021) . Venom enzymes extracted from different snake species have recently been shown in a number of studies to have potential therapeutic benefits, and this has led to a growing interest in their application in the biomedical area (Cedro et al., 2018) .
Furthermore, snake venom has been utilized in varied communities based on its ab

FAQs

What is the study aiming to test?

The study evaluates the anticancer effect of Naja haje venom, administered alone or loaded onto silica nanoparticles, against triple-negative breast cancer in vivo.

How were the experimental animals treated and analyzed?

Rats were divided into five groups with different venom dose levels. Researchers assessed inflammatory cytokines and tumor markers, extracted RNA for real-time qRT-PCR gene expression, and performed histopathological examination of breast tissue.

What were the key findings regarding tumor and inflammation?

Venom treatment in groups indicated as G4 and G5 significantly improved inflammatory cytokine and tumor marker levels, increased tumor-suppressor gene expression, and increased apoptosis and necrosis.

Sep 21, 2026

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