Comparison of nanomedicine-based chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy and photothermal therapy using reduced graphene oxide for the model system

Nanoparticle-mediated thermal Cancer therapies: Strategies to improve clinical translatability

Despite significant advances, cancer remains a leading global cause of death. Current therapies often fail due to incomplete tumor removal and nonspecific targeting, spurring interest in alternative treatments. Hyperthermia, which uses elevated temperatures to kill cancer cells or boost their sensitivity to radio/chemotherapy, has emerged as a promising alternative. Recent advancements employ nanoparticles (NPs) as heat mediators for selective cancer cell destruction, minimizing damage to healthy tissues. This approach, known as NP hyperthermia, falls into two categories: photothermal therapies (PTT) and magnetothermal therapies (MTT). PTT utilizes NPs that convert light to heat, while MTT uses magnetic NPs activated by alternating magnetic fields (AMF), both achieving localized tumor damage. These methods offer advantages like precise targeting, minimal invasiveness, and reduced systemic toxicity. However, the efficacy of NP hyperthermia depends on many factors, in particular, the NP properties, the tumor microenvironment (TME), and TME-NP interactions. Optimizing this treatment requires accurate heat monitoring strategies, such as nanothermometry and biologically relevant screening models that can better mimic the physiological features of the tumor in the human body. This review explores the state-of-the-art in NP-mediated cancer hyperthermia, discussing available nanomaterials, their strengths and weaknesses, characterization methods, and future directions. Our particular focus lies in preclinical NP screening techniques, providing an updated perspective on their efficacy and relevance in the journey towards clinical trials.

Graphene Oxide Nanoparticles and Organoids: A Prospective Advanced Model for Pancreatic Cancer Research

Pancreatic cancer, notorious for its grim 10% five-year survival rate, poses significant clinical challenges, largely due to late-stage diagnosis and limited therapeutic options. This review delves into the generation of organoids, including those derived from resected tissues, biopsies, pluripotent stem cells, and adult stem cells, as well as the advancements in 3D printing. It explores the complexities of the tumor microenvironment, emphasizing culture media, the integration of non-neoplastic cells, and angiogenesis. Additionally, the review examines the multifaceted properties of graphene oxide (GO), such as its mechanical, thermal, electrical, chemical, and optical attributes, and their implications in cancer diagnostics and therapeutics. GO's unique properties facilitate its interaction with tumors, allowing targeted drug delivery and enhanced imaging for early detection and treatment. The integration of GO with 3D cultured organoid systems, particularly in pancreatic cancer research, is critically analyzed, highlighting current limitations and future potential. This innovative approach has the promise to transform personalized medicine, improve drug screening efficiency, and aid biomarker discovery in this aggressive disease. Through this review, we offer a balanced perspective on the advancements and future prospects in pancreatic cancer research, harnessing the potential of organoids and GO.

Carbonaceous Nanomaterials for Phototherapy of Cancer

Carbonaceous nanomaterials (CNMs) have drawn tremendous biomedical research interest because of their unique structural features. Recently, CNMs, namely carbon dots, fullerenes, graphene, etc, have been successful in establishing them as considerable nanotherapeutics for phototherapy applications due to their electrical, thermal, and surface properties. This review aims to crosstalk the current understanding of CNMs as multimodal compounds in photothermal and photodynamic therapies as an integrated approach to treating cancer. It also expounds on phototherapy's biomechanics and illustrates its relation to cancer biomodulation. Critical considerations related to the structural properties, fabrication approaches, surface functionalization strategies, and biosafety profiles of CNMs have been explained. This article provides an overview of the most recent developments in the study of CNMs used in phototherapy, emphasizing their usage as nanocarriers. To conquer the current challenges of CNMs, we can raise the standard of cancer therapy for patients. The review will be of interest to the researchers working in the area of photothermal and photodynamic therapies and aiming to explore CNMs and their conjugates in cancer therapy.

High Drug-Loading Nanomedicines for Tumor Chemo-Photo Combination Therapy: Advances and Perspectives

The combination of phototherapy and chemotherapy (chemo−photo combination therapy) is an excellent attempt for tumor treatment. The key requirement of this technology is the high drug-loading nanomedicines, which can load either chemotherapy drugs or phototherapy agents at the same nanomedicines and simultaneously deliver them to tumors, and play a multimode therapeutic role for tumor treatment. These nanomedicines have high drug-loading efficiency (>30%) and good tumor combination therapeutic effect with important clinical application potential. Although there are many reports of high drug-loading nanomedicines for tumor therapy at present, systematic analyses on those nanomedicines remain lacking and a comprehensive review is urgently needed. In this review, we systematically analyze the current status of developed high drug-loading nanomedicines for tumor chemo−photo combination therapy and summarize their types, methods, drug-loading properties, in vitro and in vivo applications. The shortcomings of the existing high drug-loading nanomedicines for tumor chemo−photo combination therapy and the possible prospective development direction are also discussed. We hope to attract more attention for researchers in different academic fields, provide new insights into the research of tumor therapy and drug delivery system and develop these nanomedicines as the useful tool for tumor chemo−photo combination therapy in the future.

Multifunctional Core-Shell NiFe2O4 Shield with TiO2/rGO Nanostructures for Biomedical and Environmental Applications

Multifunctional core@shell nanoparticles have been synthesized in this paper through 3 stages: NiFe2O4 nanoparticles by microwave irradiation using Pedalium murex leaf extract as a fuel, core@shell NiFe2O4@TiO2 nanoparticles by sol-gel, and NiFe2O4@TiO2@rGO by sol-gel using preprepared reduced graphene oxide obtained by modified Hummer’s method. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of both cubic NiFe2O4 spinel and tetragonal TiO2 rutile phases, while Raman spectroscopy analysis displays both D and G bands (ID/IG = 1.04) associated with rGO. Morphological observations by HRTEM reveal a core-shell nanostructure formed by NiFe2O4 core as confirmed by SAED with subsequent thin layers of TiO2 and rGO. Magnetic measurements show a ferromagnetic behavior, where the saturation magnetization drops drastically from 45 emu/g for NiFe2O4 to 15 emu/g after TiO2 and rGO nonmagnetic bilayers coating. The as-fabricated multifunctional core@shell nanostructures demonstrate tunable self-heating characteristics: rise of temperature and specific absorption rate in the range of ΔT = 3–10°C and SAR = 3–58 W/g, respectively. This effectiveness is much close to the threshold temperature of hyperthermia (45°C), and the zones of inhibition show the better effective antibacterial activity of NTG against various Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains besides simultaneous good efficient, stable, and removable sonophotocatalyst toward the TC degradation.

Development of Novel Tetrapyrrole Structure Photosensitizers for Cancer Photodynamic Therapy

The effectiveness of photodynamic therapy (PDT) is based on the triad effects of photosensitizer (PS), molecular oxygen and visible light on malignant tumors. Such complex induces a multifactorial manner including reactive-oxygen-species-mediated damage and the killing of cells, vasculature damage of the tumor, and activation of the organism immunity. The effectiveness of PDT depends on the properties of photosensitizing drugs, their selectivity, enhanced photoproduction of reactive particles, absorption in the near infrared spectrum, and drug delivery strategies. Photosensitizers of the tetrapyrrole structure (porphyrins) are widely used in PDT because of their unique diagnostic and therapeutic functions. Nevertheless, the clinical use of the first-generation PS (sodium porfimer and hematoporphyrins) revealed difficulties, such as long-term skin photosensitivity, insufficient penetration into deep-seated tumors and incorrect localization to it. The second generation is based on different approaches of the synthesis and conjugation of porphyrin PS with biomolecules, which made it possible to approach the targeted PDT of tumors. Despite the fact that the development of the second-generation PS started about 30 years ago, these technologies are still in demand and are in intensive development, especially in the direction of improving the process of optimization split linkers responsive to input. Bioconjugation and encapsulation by targeting molecules are among the main strategies for developing of the PS synthesis. A targeted drug delivery system with the effect of increased permeability and retention by tumor cells is one of the ultimate goals of the synthesis of second-generation PS. This review presents porphyrin PS of various generations, discusses factors affecting cellular biodistribution and uptake, and indicates their role as diagnostic and therapeutic (theranostic) agents. New complexes based on porphyrin PS for photoimmunotherapy are presented, where specific antibodies are used that are chemically bound to PS, absorbing light from the near infrared part of the spectrum. Additionally, a two-photon photodynamic approach using third-generation photosensitizers for the treatment of tumors is discussed, which indicates the prospects for the further development of a promising method antitumor PDT.

Doxorubicin-loaded graphene oxide nanocomposites in cancer medicine: Stimuli-responsive carriers, co-delivery and suppressing resistance

INTRODUCTION

The application of doxorubicin (DOX) in cancer therapy has been limited due to its drug resistance and poor internalization. Graphene oxide (GO) nanostructures have the capacity for DOX delivery while promoting its cytotoxicity in cancer.

AREAS COVERED

The favorable characteristics of GO nanocomposites, preparation method, and application in cancer therapy are described. Then, DOX resistance in cancer is discussed. The GO-mediated photothermal therapy and DOX delivery for cancer suppression are described. Preparation of stimuli-responsive GO nanocomposites, surface functionalization, hybrid nanoparticles, and theranostic applications are emphasized in DOX chemotherapy.

EXPERT OPINION

Graphene oxide nanoparticle-based photothermal therapy maximizes the anti-cancer activity of DOX against cancer cells. Apart from DOX delivery, GO nanomaterials are capable of loading anti-cancer agents and genetic tools to minimize drug resistance and enhance the cytolytic impact of DOX in cancer eradication. To enhance DOX accumulation in cancer cells, stimuli-responsive (redox-, light-, enzyme- and pH-sensitive) GO nanoparticles have been developed for DOX delivery. Further development of targeted delivery of DOX-loaded GO nanomaterials against cancer cells may be achieved by surface modification of polymers such as polyethylene glycol, hyaluronic acid, and chitosan. Doxorubicin-loaded GO nanoparticles have demonstrated theranostic potential for simultaneous diagnosis and therapy. Hybridization of GO with other nanocarriers such as silica and gold nanoparticles further broadens their potential anti-cancer therapy applications.

Indocyanine green assembled free oxygen-nanobubbles towards enhanced near-infrared induced photodynamic therapy

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has shown a promising capability for cancer treatment with minimal side effects. Indocyanine green (ICG), the only clinically approved near-infrared (NIR) fluorophore, has been used as a photosensitizer for PDT in clinical application. However, the main obstacle of directly utilizing ICG in the clinic lies in its low singlet oxygen (¹O₂) quantum yield (QY) and instability in aqueous solution. To improve the PDT efficacy of ICG, free ICG molecules were assembled with free oxygen nanobubbles (NBs-O₂) to fabricate ICG-NBs-O₂ by hydrophilic-hydrophobe interactions on the gas-liquid interface. Interestingly, ¹O₂ QY of ICG-NBs-O₂ solution was significantly increased to 1.6%, which was estimated to be 8 times as high as that of free ICG solution. Meanwhile, ICG-NBs-O₂ exhibited better aqueous solution stability compared with free ICG. Furthermore, through establishing tumor models in nude mice, the therapeutic efficacy of ICG-NBs-O₂ was also assessed in the PDT treatment of oral cancer. The tumor volume in ICG-NBs-O₂ treated group on day 14 decreased to 0.56 of the initial tumor size on day 1, while the tumor volume in free ICG treated group increased to 2.4 times. The results demonstrated that ICG-NBs-O₂ showed excellent tumor ablation in vivo. Therefore, this facile method provided an effective strategy for enhanced PDT treatment of ICG and showed great potential in clinical application.

ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL

Supplementary material (measurements of the singlet oxygen quantum yield of ICG-NBs-O₂, time-dependent temperature changes during the laser irradiation, photographs of Cal27 tumor-bearing nude mice and complete blood count of health male balb/c mice analysis) is available in the online version of this article at 10.1007/s12274-022-4085-0.

Functionalized Graphene Platforms for Anticancer Drug Delivery

Two-dimensional nanomaterials are emerging as promising candidates for a wide range of biomedical applications including tissue engineering, biosensing, pathogen incapacitation, wound healing, and gene and drug delivery. Graphene, due to its high surface area, photothermal property, high loading capacity, and efficient cellular uptake, is at the forefront of these materials and plays a key role in this multidisciplinary research field. Poor water dispersibility and low functionality of graphene, however, hamper its hybridization into new nanostructures for future nanomedicine. Functionalization of graphene, either by covalent or non-covalent methods, is the most useful strategy to improve its dispersion in water and functionality as well as processability into new materials and devices. In this review, recent advances in functionalization of graphene derivatives by different (macro)molecules for future biomedical applications are reported and explained. In particular, hydrophilic functionalization of graphene and graphene oxide (GO) to improve their water dispersibility and physicochemical properties is discussed. We have focused on the anticancer drug delivery of polyfunctional graphene sheets.

An Engineered Prussian Blue Nanoparticles-based Nanoimmunotherapy Elicits Robust and Persistent Immunological Memory in a TH-MYCN Neuroblastoma Model

A combination therapy using Prussian blue nanoparticles (PBNP) as photothermal therapy (PTT) agents coated with CpG oligodeoxynucleotides, an immunologic adjuvant, as a nanoimmunotherapy (CpG-PBNP-PTT) for neuroblastoma (NB) is described. NB driven by MYCN amplification confers high risk and correlates with a dismal prognosis, accounting for the majority of NB-related mortality. The efficacy of the CpG-PBNP-PTT nanoimmunotherapy in a clinically relevant, TH-MYCN murine NB model (9464D) overexpressing MYCN is tested. When administered to 9464D NB cells in vitro, CpG-PBNP-PTT triggers thermal dose-dependent immunogenic cell death and tumor cell priming for immune recognition in vitro, measured by the expression of specific costimulatory and antigen-presenting molecules. In vivo, intratumorally administered CpG-PBNP-PTT generates complete tumor regression and significantly higher long-term survival compared to controls. Furthermore, CpG-PBNP-PTT-treated mice reject tumor rechallenge. Ex vivo studies confirm these therapeutic responses result from the generation of robust T cell-mediated immunological memory. Consequently, in a synchronous 9464D tumor model, CpG-PBNP-PTT induces complete tumor regression on the treated flank and significantly slows tumor progression on the untreated flank, improving animal survival. These findings demonstrate that localized administration of the CpG-PBNP-PTT nanoimmunotherapy drives potent systemic T cell responses in solid tumors such as NB and therefore has therapeutic implications for NB.

Photosensitizer-Functionalized Nanocomposites for Light-Activated Cancer Theranostics

Photosensitizers (PSs) have received significant attention recently in cancer treatment due to its theranostic capability for imaging and phototherapy. These PSs are highly responsive to light source of a suitable wavelength for image-guided cancer therapy from generated singlet oxygen and/or thermal heat. Various organic dye PSs show tremendous attenuation of tumor cells during cancer treatment. Among them, porphyrin and chlorophyll-based ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) dyes are employed for photodynamic therapy (PDT) by reactive oxygen species (ROS) and free radicals generated with 400-700 nm laser lights, which have poor tissue penetration depth. To enhance the efficacy of PDT, other light sources such as red light laser and X-ray have been suggested; nonetheless, it is still a challenging task to improve the light penetration depth for deep tumor treatment. To overcome this deficiency, near infrared (NIR) (700-900 nm) PSs, indocyanine green (ICG), and its derivatives like IR780, IR806 and IR820, have been introduced for imaging and phototherapy. These NIR PSs have been used in various cancer treatment modality by combining photothermal therapy (PTT) and/or PDT with chemotherapy or immunotherapy. In this review, we will focus on the use of different PSs showing photothermal/photodynamic response to UV-Vis or NIR-Vis light. The emphasis is a comprehensive review of recent smart design of PS-loaded nanocomposites for targeted delivery of PSs in light-activated combination cancer therapy.

Semiconducting polymer nanoparticles for photothermal ablation of colorectal cancer organoids

Colorectal cancer (CRC) treatment is currently hindered by micrometastatic relapse that cannot be removed completely during surgery and is often chemotherapy resistant. Targeted theranostic nanoparticles (NPs) that can produce heat for ablation and enable tumor visualization via their fluorescence offer advantages for detection and treatment of disseminated small nodules. A major hurdle in clinical translation of nanoparticles is their interaction with the 3D tumor microenvironment. To address this problem tumor organoid technology was used to evaluate the ablative potential of CD44-targeted polymer nanoparticles using hyaluronic acid (HA) as the targeting agent and coating it onto hybrid donor acceptor polymer particles (HDAPPs) to form HA-HDAPPs. Additionally, nanoparticles composed from only the photothermal polymer, poly[4,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl)-cyclopenta[2,1-b;3,4-b']dithiophene-2,6-diyl-alt-2,1,3-benzoselenadiazole-4,7-diyl] (PCPDTBSe), were also coated with HA, to form HA-BSe NPs, and evaluated in 3D. Monitoring of nanoparticle transport in 3D organoids revealed uniform diffusion of non-targeted HDAPPs in comparison to attenuated diffusion of HA-HDAPPs due to nanoparticle-matrix interactions. Computational diffusion profiles suggested that HA-HDAPPs transport may not be accounted for by diffusion alone, which is indicative of nanoparticle/cell matrix interactions. Photothermal activation revealed that only HA-BSe NPs were able to significantly reduce tumor cell viability in the organoids. Despite limited transport of the CD44-targeted theranostic nanoparticles, their targeted retention provides increased heat for enhanced photothermal ablation in 3D, which is beneficial for assessing nanoparticle therapies prior to in vivo testing.

Ultra-stable tellurium-doped carbon quantum dots for cell protection and near-infrared photodynamic application

It is important to regulate the concentration of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cells since they play important roles in metabolism. Thus, developing nanoreagents to control the ROS is critical. Herein, tellurium-doped carbon quantum dots (Te-CDs) were developed by a simple and efficient hydrothermal method, which can scavenge H₂O₂ to protect cells under ambient condition, but generate ·OH under 808 nm irradiation as photodynamic application. This contribution presented a kind of novel CDs with dual-functions, which can potentially regulate ROS under different conditions.

The importance of spheroids in analyzing nanomedicine efficacy

The use of nanomedicines for cancer treatment holds a great potential due to their improved efficacy and safety. During the nanomedicine preclinical in vitro evaluation stage, these are mainly tested on cell culture monolayers. However, these 2D models are an unrealistic representation of the in vivo tumors, leading to an inaccurate screening of the candidate formulations. To address this problem, spheroids are emerging as an additional tool to validate the efficacy of new therapeutics due to the ability of these 3D in vitro cancer models to mimic the key features displayed by in vivo solid tumors. In this review, the application of spheroids for the evaluation of nanomedicines' physicochemical properties and therapeutic efficacy is discussed.

3D cultures for modeling nanomaterial-based photothermal therapy

Photothermal therapy (PTT) is one of the most promising techniques for cancer tumor ablation. Nanoparticles are increasingly being investigated for use with PTT and can serve as theranostic agents. Based on the ability of near-infrared nano-photo-absorbers to generate heat under laser irradiation, PTT could prove advantageous in certain situations over more classical cancer therapies. To analyze the efficacy of nanoparticle-based PTT, preclinical in vitro studies typically use 2D cultures, but this method cannot completely mimic the complex tumor organization, bioactivity, and physiology that all control the complex penetration depth, biodistribution, and tissue diffusion parameters of nanomaterials in vivo. To fill this knowledge gap, 3D culture systems have been explored for PTT analysis. These models provide more realistic microenvironments that allow spatiotemporal oxygen gradients and cancer cell adaptations to be considered. This review highlights the work that has been done to advance 3D models for cancer microenvironment modeling, specifically in the context of advanced, functionalized nanoparticle-directed PTT.

Fluorinated Chitosan To Enhance Transmucosal Delivery of Sonosensitizer-Conjugated Catalase for Sonodynamic Bladder Cancer Treatment Post-intravesical Instillation

Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) is a noninvasive ultrasound-triggered therapeutic strategy for site-specific treatment of tumors with great depth penetration. The design of nano-sonosensitizers suitable for SDT treatment of bladder cancer (BCa) post-intravesical instillation has not yet been reported. Herein, a transmucosal oxygen-self-production SDT nanoplatform is developed to achieve highly efficient SDT against BCa. In this system, fluorinated chitosan (FCS) is synthesized as a highly effective nontoxic transmucosal delivery carrier to assemble with meso-tetra(4-carboxyphenyl)porphine-conjugated catalase (CAT-TCPP). The formed CAT-TCPP/FCS nanoparticles after intravesical instillation into the bladder cavity exhibit excellent transmucosal and intratumoral penetration capacities and could efficiently relieve hypoxia in tumor tissues by the catalase-catalyzed O₂ generation from tumor endogenous H₂O₂ to further improve the therapeutic efficacy of SDT to ablate orthotopic bladder tumors under ultrasound. Our work presents a nano-sonosensitizer formulation with FCS to enhance transmucosal delivery and intratumoral diffusion and CAT to improve tumor oxygenation, promising for instillation-based SDT to treat bladder tumors without the concern of systemic toxicity.

Future Applications of MXenes in Biotechnology, Nanomedicine, and Sensors

The past few years have seen significant developments in the chemistry and potential biological applications of 2D materials. This review focuses on recent advances in the biotechnological and biomedical applications of MXenes, which are 2D carbides, nitrides, and carbonitrides of transition metals. Nanomaterials based on MXenes can be used as therapeutics for anticancer treatment, in photothermal therapy as drug delivery platforms, or as nanodrugs without any additional modification. Furthermore, we discuss the potential use of these materials in biosensing and bioimaging, including magnetic resonance and photoacoustic imaging techniques. Finally, we present the most significant examples of the use of MXenes as efficient agents for environmental and antimicrobial treatments, as well as a brief discussion of their future prospects and challenges.

Nanobiomaterials: from 0D to 3D for tumor therapy and tissue regeneration

Nanobiomaterials have attracted tremendous attention in the biomedical field. Especially in the past few years, a large number of low dimensional nanobiomaterials, including 0D nanostructures, 1D nanotubes and 2D nanosheets, were employed for tumor therapy due to their optically triggered tumor therapy effects and drug loading capacities. However, these low dimensional nanobiomaterials cannot support cell adhesion and possess poor tissue regeneration ability, thus they are not suitable for application in regenerative medicine. Three dimensional (3D) nanofiber scaffolds have attracted extensive attention in tissue regeneration, including bone, skin, nerve and cardiac tissues, due to their similar extracellular matrix structures. Additionally, many 3D scaffolds displayed bone and cartilage regeneration abilities. Therefore, to obtain materials with both tumor therapy and tissue regeneration abilities, it is meaningful and necessary to develop 3D nanobiomaterials with multifunctions. In this review, we systematically review the research progress of nanobiomaterials with varied dimensional structures including 0D, 1D, 2D and 3D, as well as evolutional functions from single tumor therapy to simultaneous tumor therapy and tissue regeneration. This review may pave the way for developing an interdisciplinary research of nanobiomaterials in combination of tumor therapy and regenerative medicine.

Do biomedical engineers dream of graphene sheets?

During the past few years, graphene has outstandingly emerged as a key nanomaterial for boosting the performance of commercial, industrial and scientific related technologies. The popularity of this novel nanomaterial in biomedical engineering is due to its excellent biological, electronic, optical and thermal properties that, as a whole, surpass the features of commonly used biomaterials and consequently open a wide range of applications so far within the reach of science fiction. In this minireview, the potential of graphene and its based materials in the expanding biomedical field is highlighted with focus on groundbreaking diagnostic, monitoring and therapeutic strategies. Some of the major challenges related to the synthesis and safety of graphene-based materials are also briefly discussed because of their critical importance in bringing this class of carbon materials closer to the clinic.

Light-activatable Chlorin e6 (Ce6)-imbedded erythrocyte membrane vesicles camouflaged Prussian blue nanoparticles for synergistic photothermal and photodynamic therapies of cancer

Multiple therapeutic modalities, such as photodynamic (PDT) and photothermal (PTT) therapies, have been jointly applied to produce a synergistic effect for tumor eradication based on the hyperthermia and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) mediated by photoactive agents. Effective delivery of highly efficient photosensitizers and photothermal agents is the key for combination of PDT/PTT. Herein, we propose a strategy to functionalize Prussian blue (PB) nanoparticles (NPs) with Chlorin e6 (Ce6)-imbedded erythrocyte membrane vesicles. This nanoplatform can address the major issues of these two capable photoactive agents, such as limited biocompatibility, lack of functional chemical groups, and poor bioavailability due to rapid blood clearance or self-aggregation. Specifically, PB NPs were packaged within Ce6-imbedded erythrocyte membrane vesicles, named as PB@RBC/Ce6 NPs, to take advantage of both biological functions of natural erythrocyte membranes and the unique physicochemical properties of synthetic nanoagents. Compared to bare PB NPs or free Ce6, PB@RBC/Ce6 NPs exhibited considerably enhanced cellular uptake and accumulation in tumoral tissues. Moreover, the PB@RBC/Ce6 NP-mediated PDT/PTT combination therapies produced a notable effect in boosting the necrosis and late apoptosis of tumor cells in vitro, and further showed a synergistic therapeutic effect against an orthotopic tumor model in vivo.

Construction of 2D Antimony(III) Selenide Nanosheets for Highly Efficient Photonic Cancer Theranostics

Photonic cancer hyperthermia has been considered to be one of the most representative noninvasive cancer treatments with high therapeutic efficiency and biosafety. However, it still remains a crucial challenge to develop efficient photothermal nanoagents with satisfactory photothermal performance and biocompatibility, among which two-dimensional (2D) ultrathin nanosheets have recently been regarded as the promising multifunctional theranostic agents for photothermal tumor ablation. In this work, we report, for the first time, on the construction of a novel kind of photothermal agents based on the intriguing 2D antimony(III) selenide (Sb₂Se₃) nanosheets for highly efficient photoacoustic imaging-guided photonic cancer hyperthermia by near-infrared (NIR) laser activation. These Sb₂Se₃ nanosheets were easily fabricated by a novel but efficiently combined liquid nitrogen pretreatment and freezing-thawing approach, which were featured with high photothermal-conversion capability (extinction coefficient: 33.2 L g^-1 cm^-1; photothermal-conversion efficiency: 30.78%). The further surface engineering of these Sb₂Se₃ ultrathin nanosheets with poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) substantially improved the biocompatibility of the nanosheets and their stability in physiological environments, guaranteeing the feasibility in photonic antitumor applications. Importantly, 2D Sb₂Se₃-PVP nanosheets have been certificated to efficiently eradicate the tumors by NIR-triggered photonic tumor hyperthermia. Especially, the biosafety in vitro and in vivo of these Sb₂Se₃ ultrathin nanosheets has been evaluated and demonstrated. This work meaningfully expands the biomedical applications of 2D bionanoplatforms with a planar topology through probing into new members (Sb₂Se₃ in this work) of 2D biomaterials with unique intrinsic physiochemical property and biological effect.

Efficient combined near-infrared-triggered therapy: Phototherapy over chemotherapy in chitosan-reduced graphene oxide-IR820 dye-doxorubicin nanoplatforms

Significant efforts are currently being funneled into the improvement of therapeutic outcomes in cancer by designing hybrid nanomaterials that synergistically combine chemotherapeutic abilities and near-infrared (NIR) light-activated photothermal (PTT) and photodynamic (PDT) activity. Herein, a nanotherapeutic platform is specifically designed to integrate combinational functionalities: chemotherapy, PTT, PDT and traceable optical properties. The system, based on chitosan-reduced graphene oxide (chit-rGO), incorporates and carries a large payload of IR820 dye with dual PTT and PDT activity and a chemotherapeutic drug, doxorubicin (DOX). The potential of the fabricated nanoplatforms to operate as an NIR activatable therapeutic agent is first assessed in aqueous solution by investigating its ability to generate singlet oxygen and heat under NIR irradiation with 785 nm laser irradiation. The in vitro anticancer activity of chit-rGO-IR820-DOX is evaluated against murine colon carcinoma cells (C26). The fabricated nanosystem exhibits synergistic anticancer activity against C26 cancer cells by combining IR820 induced PDT, simultaneous graphene and IR820 induced PTT and the chemotherapeutic effect of DOX. Notably, the therapeutic performance of chit-rGO-IR820-DOX can be controlled by the ratio between IR820 and DOX. Moreover, chit-rGO-IR820-DOX facilitates localization inside cancer cells correlated with the release of DOX via mapping by confocal Raman microscopy.

Carbon-Based Nanomaterials for Biomedical Applications: A Recent Study

The study of carbon-based nanomaterials (CBNs) for biomedical applications has attracted great attention due to their unique chemical and physical properties including thermal, mechanical, electrical, optical and structural diversity. With the help of these intrinsic properties, CBNs, including carbon nanotubes (CNT), graphene oxide (GO), and graphene quantum dots (GQDs), have been extensively investigated in biomedical applications. This review summarizes the most recent studies in developing of CBNs for various biomedical applications including bio-sensing, drug delivery and cancer therapy.

Development of biotin molecule targeted cancer cell drug delivery of doxorubicin loaded κ-carrageenan grafted graphene oxide nanocarrier

Cervical cancer is one of the most occurring cancers and the fourth leading occurrence of cancer in women, worldwide. In this study, we planned to synthesis κ-Carrageenan grafted graphene oxide nanocarrier conjugated with biotin (GO-κ-Car-biotin) for targeted cervical cancer. Doxorubicin (DOX) is a well-known anticancer drug for any type of cancer and it is used to entrap over on the graphene oxide surface via π-π stacking interaction. The chemical function and crystalline nature of the synthesized nanocarrier was characterized by Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray diffraction Analysis (XRD). The surface morphological study was carried out through Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Atomic force microscopy (AFM). The in-vitro drug release profile of DOX was carried out by UV-Vis spectrometer at the λ_max value of 480 nm. The entrapment of DOX on GO-κ-car-biotin has been observed at 94%. The hydrophilic DOX drug has excellent pH-sensitive drug released in an in-vitro study. The anticancer efficiency of the synthesized GO-based nanocarrier was examined using HeLa cell line in-vitro. Cell viability, proliferation, cytotoxicity, and nuclear chromatin condensation was studied by trypan blue assay, triphosphate assay (ATP), lactate dehydrogenase assay (LDH) and Hoechst staining respectively. Finally, biotin leading GO-κ-Car carrier demonstrated is a promising drug delivery system for cervical cancer treatment.

Near-infrared nanoparticles based on indocyanine green-conjugated albumin: a versatile platform for imaging-guided synergistic tumor chemo-phototherapy with temperature-responsive drug release

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to develop a multifunctional theranostic agent based on BSA nanoparticles (NPs), which loaded artemisinin (ART) and co-conjugated with indocyanine green (ICG) and arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) peptide (RGD-indocyanine green-Bovine Serum Albumin-artemisinin [IBA] NPs).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The physicochemical parameters of RGD-IBA NPs were character-ized in terms of the particle size, zeta potential, morphology, entrapment efficiency, drug loading, in vitro release behavior, photothermal and photodynamic effect, and in vitro anticancer ability. In vivo fluorescence and thermal imaging as well as antitumor studies were also evaluated.

RESULTS

The tumor chemotherapeutic effects of ART and the ability of fluorescence imaging, hyperthermia generation and reactive oxygen species production of ICG and tumor-targeting RGD were integrated to achieve RGD-IBA NPs for imaging-guided tumor-targeted chemotherapy/photothermal/photodynamic therapy (chemo-phototherapy). The RGD-IBA NPs showed enhanced physiological stability and photo-stability compared with free ART and ICG. In addition, they were temperature-responsive; their sizes increased with increasing temperature between 25°C and 55°C, thereby leading to drug release upon the irradiation with near infrared (NIR) laser. In vivo fluorescence images of tumor-bearing mice showed that the RGD-IBA NPs could highly and passively reach the targeted tumor region with maximum accumulation at 24 hours post-intravenous injection. The in vitro and in vivo results demonstrated that the RGD-IBA NPs not only have good biocompatibility, but also are highly efficient tumor synergistic chemo-phototherapeutic agents.

CONCLUSION

Through this study, it was found that RGD-IBA NPs could potentially be a very promising tumor theranostic agent.

Therapeutic enhancement of a cytotoxic agent using photochemical internalisation in 3D compressed collagen constructs of ovarian cancer

Photochemical internalisation (PCI) is a method for enhancing delivery of drugs to their intracellular target sites of action. In this study we investigated the efficacy of PCI using a porphyrin photosensitiser and a cytotoxic agent on spheroid and non-spheroid compressed collagen 3D constructs of ovarian cancer versus conventional 2D culture. The therapeutic responses of two human carcinoma cell lines (SKOV3 and HEY) were compared using a range of assays including optical imaging. The treatment was shown to be effective in non-spheroid constructs of both cell lines causing a significant and synergistic reduction in cell viability measured at 48 or 96 h post-illumination. In the larger spheroid constructs, PCI was still effective but required higher saporin and photosensitiser doses. Moreover, in contrast to the 2D and non-spheroid experiments, where comparable efficacy was found for the two cell lines, HEY spheroid constructs were found to be more susceptible to PCI and a lower dose of saporin could be used. PCI treatment was observed to induce death principally by apoptosis in the 3D constructs compared to the mostly necrotic cell death caused by PDT. At low oxygen levels (1%) both PDT and PCI were significantly less effective in the constructs. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Assessment of new drugs or delivery systems for cancer therapy prior to conducting in vivo studies often relies on the use of conventional 2D cell culture, however 3D cancer constructs can provide more physiologically relevant information owing to their 3D architecture and the presence of an extracellular matrix. This study investigates the efficacy of Photochemical Internalisation mediated drug delivery in 3D constructs. In 3D cultures, both oxygen and drug delivery to the cells are limited by diffusion through the extracellular matrix unlike 2D models, and in our model we have used compressed collagen constructs where the density of collagen mimics physiological values. These 3D constructs are therefore well suited to studying drug delivery using PCI. Our study highlights the potential of these constructs for identifying differences in therapeutic response to PCI of two ovarian carcinoma lines.

Antitumor Effect of GO-PEG-DOX Complex on EMT-6 Mouse Breast Cancer Cells

OBJECTIVE

Doxorubicin (DOX) can be used to treat malignant tumors, but with multiple adverse effects. Graphene oxide-polyethylene glycol (GO-PEG) is a novel nanoscale carrier material and can elevate solubility and biocompatibility of drugs. This study prepared a GO-PEG-DOX complex, whose toxicity and antitumor effects were evaluated on mouse EMT-6 breast cancer cells.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

GO-PEG-DOX complex was prepared for calculating the drug carrier rate of DOX on GO-PEG by MV approach. EMT-6 cells were treated with 40 μg/mL GO-PEG, 1 μg/mL DOX, or 40 μg/mL +1 μg/mL GO-PEG-DOX for 72 h of incubation. Cells without treatment were considered the control group. Cell survival rate and apoptotic rate were tested at different time points.

RESULTS

GO-PEG and GO-PEG-DOX complex were successfully prepared with satisfactory solubility. After 72 h of incubation, EMT-6 cells after GO-PEG-DOX treatment had significantly higher survival rate than GO-PEG group (p < 0.05). All three treatment groups had significantly elevated apoptotic rates than control group (p < 0.05). GO-PEG-DOX group had much more apoptosis (p < 0.05 compared with DOX group). Moreover, with elongated treatment time, all groups showed decreased survival rate (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

GO-PEG did not reduce the cytotoxicity of DOX on EMT-6 cells. GO-PEG-DOX complex can increase the water solubility and targeting sensitivity of DOX, with facilitating effects on DOX-induced tumor cell apoptosis.

Carbon Nanomaterials for Targeted Cancer Therapy Drugs: A Critical Review

Cancer represents one of the main causes of human death in developed countries. Most current therapies, unfortunately, carry a number of side effects, such as toxicity and damage to healthy cells, as well as the risk of resistance and recurrence. Therefore, cancer research is trying to develop therapeutic procedures with minimal negative consequences. The use of nanomaterial-based systems appears to be one of them. In recent years, great progress has been made in the field using nanomaterials with high potential in biomedical applications. Carbon nanomaterials, thanks to their unique physicochemical properties, are gaining more and more popularity in cancer therapy. They are valued especially for their ability to deliver drugs or small therapeutic molecules to these cells. Through surface functionalization, they can specifically target tumor tissues, increasing the therapeutic potential and significantly reducing the adverse effects of therapy. Their potential future use could, therefore, be as vehicles for drug delivery. This review presents the latest findings of research studies using carbon nanomaterials in the treatment of various types of cancer. To carry out this study, different databases such as Web of Science, PubMed, MEDLINE and Google Scholar were employed. The findings of research studies chosen from more than 2000 viewed scientific publications from the last 15 years were compared.

Photodynamic therapy-mediated remote control of chemotherapy toward synergistic anticancer treatment

Stimuli-responsive nanomedicine (NM) with an on-demand drug release property has demonstrated promising utility toward cancer therapy. However, sensitivity and cancer selectivity still remain critical challenges for intelligent NM, which will compromise its therapeutic efficacy and lead to undesired toxicity to normal tissues. Herein, we report a convenient and universal approach to spatiotemporally control the chemodrug release via the photodynamic therapy (PDT)-mediated alteration of the tumor microenvironment. An arylboronic ester (BE)-modified amphiphilic copolymer (mPEG-PBAM) was designed to form micelles and encapsulate doxorubicin (Dox) and hematoporphyrin (Hp). The Dox/Hp co-encapsulated micelles (PB-DH) were stable under normal physiological environment with a uniform size distribution (∼100 nm). In contrast, under tumor-specific light irradiation, extensive reactive oxygen species (ROS) will be generated from Hp in the tumor sites, thus quickly dissociating the micelles and selectively releasing the chemodrug Dox as a consequence of the ROS-mediated cleavage of the hydrophobic BE moieties on the polymers. As such, synergistic anti-cancer efficacy was achieved between the Dox-mediated chemotherapy and the Hp-mediated PDT. This study therefore provides a useful approach to realize the precise and selective control over chemodrug delivery, and it renders promising utilities for the programmable combination of PDT and chemotherapy.

Photodynamic therapy in 3D cancer models and the utilisation of nanodelivery systems

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is the subject of considerable research in experimental cancer models mainly for the treatment of solid cancerous tumours. Recent studies on the use of nanoparticles as photosensitiser carriers have demonstrated improved PDT efficacy in experimental cancer therapy. Experiments typically employ conventional monolayer cell culture but there is increasing interest in testing PDT using three dimensional (3D) cancer models. 3D cancer models can better mimic in vivo models than 2D cultures by for example enabling cancer cell interactions with a surrounding extracellular matrix which should enable the treatment to be optimised prior to in vivo studies. The aim of this review is to discuss recent research using PDT in different types of 3D cancer models, from spheroids to nano-fibrous scaffolds, using a range of photosensitisers on their own or incorporated in nanoparticles and nanodelivery systems.

Indocyanine Green-Conjugated Magnetic Prussian Blue Nanoparticles for Synchronous Photothermal/Photodynamic Tumor Therapy

Indocyanine green (ICG) is capable of inducing a photothermal effect and the production of cytotoxic reactive oxygen species for cancer therapy. However, the major challenge in applying ICG molecules for antitumor therapy is associated with their instability in aqueous conditions and rapid clearance from blood circulation, which causes insufficient bioavailability at the tumor site. Herein, we conjugated ICG molecules with Prussian blue nanoparticles enclosing a Fe₃O₄ nanocore, which was facilitated by cationic polyethyleneimine via electrostatic adsorption. The nanocarrier-loaded ICG formed stable aggregates that enhanced cellular uptake and prevented fluorescence quenching. Moreover, the strong superparamagnetism of the Fe₃O₄ core in the obtained nanocomposites further improved cellular internalization of the drugs guided by a localized magnetic field. The therapeutic efficacy of this nanoplatform was evaluated using tumor models established in nude mice, which demonstrated remarkable tumor ablation in vivo due to strong photothermal/photodynamic effects. This study provides promising evidence that this multifunctional nanoagent might function as an efficient mediator for combining photothermal and photodynamic cancer therapy.

Polypyrrole-coated UCNPs@mSiO2@ZnO nanocomposite for combined photodynamic and photothermal therapy

Under 980 nm light irradiation, polypyrrole-coated UCNPs@mSiO₂@ZnO nanocomposites can convert NIR light to achieve both photodynamic therapy (PDT) and photothermal therapy (PTT).

NIR-responsive carbon-based nanocarriers for switchable on/off drug release and synergistic cancer therapy

This communication reports a chitosan-gated carbon-based nanocarrier as a NIR light-switchable drug delivery system for controlled on/off drug release.

Chelator-Free Conjugation of 99mTc and Gd3+ to PEGylated Nanographene Oxide for Dual-Modality SPECT/MR Imaging of Lymph Nodes

PEGylated ultrasmall nanographene oxide (usNGO-PEG) has exhibited a great potential in nanotheranostics due to its newly discovered physicochemical properties derived from the rich functional groups and bonds. Herein, we developed a general, simple, and kitlike preparation approach for ^99mTc- and Gd-anchored NGO-PEG using a chelator-free strategy. In this strategy, [^99mTc^I(CO)₃(OH₂)₃]⁺ (abbreviated to ^99mTc^I) and GdCl₃ were mixed with usNGO-PEG to yield ^99mTc- and Gd-usNGO-PEG via the synergistic coordination of N and O atoms from NGO and PEG with ^99mTc^I and Gd³⁺ without additional exogenous chelators. Under optimized conditions, the nanoprobes ^99mTc- and Gd-usNGO-PEG were reliably prepared with high yields and good stability. Serial comparative experiments of the labeling yield, the measurements of -NH₂ density and ζ-potentials, and various characterizations including energy-dispersive X-ray analysis spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy demonstrated that both usNGO and PEG synergistically provide the electron-donating atoms O and N to coordinate with ^99mTc^I and Gd to form stable nanocomplexes. Furthermore, both ^99mTc- and Gd-usNGO-PEG exhibited excellent in vivo imaging of lymph nodes using single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging after local injection. Therefore, these results showed the successful establishment of ^99mTc- and Gd-anchored usNGO-PEG using a chelator-free strategy and the potential of multimodality SPECT/CT and MR imaging of lymph nodes.

Sub-100nm, long tumor retention SN-38-loaded photonic micelles for tri-modal cancer therapy

The tumor penetration and accumulation of nanoparticle-based drug delivery systems are highly dependent on the particle size. Nanomedicines in the sub-100nm range have been suggested by previous studies to have superior antitumor efficacy on various solid tumors. SN-38 is a very important and highly potent drug for several cancers including colon cancer. However, due to the ultra-flat aromatic structure of SN-38, it is typically very difficult to produce sub-100nm, SN-38-encapsulated nanoparticles without modification of the chemical structure. Here, we report on the successful production of 20-30nm, SN-38-encapsulated photonic micelles for effectively trimodal cancer therapy. Taking advantages of the supramolecular "π-π" stacking and hydrophobicity interaction between SN-38, and a unique class of photonic nanoporphyrin micelles (NPM), the extremely hydrophobic SN-38 was successfully encapsulated into NPM with significantly increased water solubility (up to 500 times). At equivalent dose of drug, photosensitizer and light irradiation, combination therapy with SN-38-encapsulated nanoporphyrin micelles (SN-NPM) enhanced the in vitro antitumor activity by 78 and 350 times over single treatment with SN-38 and phototherapy alone, respectively. Due to the relatively small size, SN-NPM possessed superior long tumor retention time (>5days) and much higher accumulation in tumors than in normal organs, as shown by near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) imaging. Furthermore, the trimodal therapy (photothermal-, photodynamic- and chemo-therapy) with SN-NPM demonstrated dramatically enhanced in vivo antitumor efficacy over single treatment on nude mice bearing HT-29 colon cancer xenograft. Therefore, these sub-100nm, SN-38-encapsulated photonic micelles show great promise for multimodal cancer therapy.

Quantification of a Novel Photosensitizer of Chlorin e6-C15-Monomethyl Ester in Beagle Dog Plasma Using HPLC: Application to Pharmacokinetic Studies

Chlorin e6-C15-monomethyl ester (CMME) is a novel photosensitizer, which is synthetized from the degradation products of silkworm excrement. Preclinical studies on the promising photosensitizer CMME are necessary to determine its therapeutic efficacy and druglikeness. A high-performance liquid chromatography with UV detection (HPLC–UV) method was established for the determination of CMME in beagle dog plasma. The sample preparation involved a protein-precipitation method with acetonitrile after the addition of tanshinone IIA as an internal standard (IS). CMME and the IS were separated on a Diamonsil C18 (2) column (100 mm × 4.6 mm, 5 μm) with a isocratic system of methanol–water containing 20 mM ammonium acetate with 0.3% glacial acetic acid (85:15, v/v). The flow rate was 1.0 mL/min with UV detection using a wavelength of 400 nm. The method was sensitive enough with a lower limit of quantitation (LLOQ) of 0.05 μg/mL and had a good linearity (r² > 0.999) over the linear range of 0.05–5.00 μg/mL. The intra-day and inter-day accuracies ranged from 98.5% to 102.8% and precisions (RSD) were within 6.8%. The validated method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of CMME after intravenous administration of single and multiple doses in beagle dogs.

Skin-safe photothermal therapy enabled by responsive release of acid-activated membrane-disruptive polymer from polydopamine nanoparticle upon very low laser irradiation

How to ablate tumor without damaging skin is a challenge for photothermal therapy.