Doxorubicin-loaded gold nanorods: a multifunctional chemo-photothermal nanoplatform for cancer management

[摘要] Two of the limitations associated with cancer treatment are the low efficacy and the high dose-related side effects of anticancerdrugs. The purpose of the current study was to fabricate biocompatible multifunctional drug-loaded nanoscale moieties forco-therapy (chemo-photothermal therapy) with maximum efficacy and minimum side effects. Herein, we report in vitro anticancerous effects of doxorubicin (DOX) loaded on gold nanorods coated with the polyelectrolyte poly(sodium-4-styrenesulfonate)(PSS-GNRs) with and without NIR laser (808 nm, power density = 1.5 W/cm2 for 2 min) irradiation. The drug-loading capacity ofPSS-GNRs was about 76% with a drug loading content of 3.2 mg DOX/mL. The cumulative DOX release significantly increasedafter laser exposure compared to non-irradiated samples (p < 0.05). The zeta potential values of GNRs, PSS-GNRs and DOX-PSSGNRs were measured as 42 ± 0.1 mV, −40 ± 0.3 mV and 39.3 ± 0.6 mV, respectively. PSS-GNRs nanocomplexes were found to bebiocompatible and showed higher photothermal stability. The DOX-conjugated nanocomplexes with NIR laser irradiation appearmore efficient in cell inhibition (93%) than those without laser exposure (65%) and doxorubicin alone (84%). The IC50 values ofPSS-GNRs-DOX and PSS-GNRs-DOX were measured as 7.99 and 3.12 µg/mL, respectively, with laser irradiation. Thus, a combinatorial approach based on chemotherapy and photothermal strategies appears to be a promising platform in cancer management.

[学科分类] 环境监测和分析

[关键词] chemotherapy;doxorubicin;gold nanorods;NIR laser;photothermaltherapy