Doxorubicin-transferrin conjugate triggers pro-oxidative disorders in solid tumor cells.

The formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is a widely accepted mechanism of doxorubicin (DOX) toxicity toward cancer cells. However, little is known about the potential of new systems, designed for more efficient and targeted doxorubicin delivery (i.e. protein conjugates, polymeric micelles, liposomes, monoclonal antibodies), to induce oxidative stress (OS) in tumors and hematological malignancies. Therefore, the objective of our study was to determine the relation between the toxicity of doxorubicin-transferring (DOX-TRF) conjugate and its capability to generate oxidative/nitrosative stress in solid tumor cells.