Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, Jilin 130022, China.
Langmuir. 2013 May 28;29(21):6396-403. doi: 10.1021/la400479n. Epub 2013 May 14.
In this paper, the use of biocompatible carbon dots (C-Dots) as caps on the surface of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSPs) for the design of intelligent on-demand molecular delivery and cell imaging system is described. These C-Dots-attached MSPs exhibited low cytotoxicity toward the cells and strong luminescence both in vitro and in vivo. A further loading of anticancer drug (DOX) endowed the fluorescent material with therapeutic functions. It was found that changing the pH to mildly acidic condition at physiological temperature caused the dissociation of the C-Dots@MSPs complex and release of a large number of DOX from the nanospheres. Moreover, the DOX-loaded nanocomposites exhibited a remarkably enhanced efficiency in killing cancer cells. The endocytosis and the efficient drug release properties of the system were confirmed by luminescence microscopy. Overall, we believe that the well-designed C-Dots@MSPs nanocomposites are promising for a simultaneous bioimaging and drug delivery system, which show more potential for clinical application.
本文描述了将生物相容性碳点（C-Dots）用作介孔硅纳米粒子（MSPs）表面的盖帽，以设计智能按需分子递药和细胞成像系统。这些 C-Dots 修饰的 MSPs 在体外和体内均表现出低细胞毒性和强发光性。进一步负载抗癌药物（DOX）使荧光材料具有治疗功能。结果发现，在生理温度下将 pH 值调节至微酸性条件会导致 C-Dots@MSPs 复合物解离，并从纳米球中释放大量 DOX。此外，负载 DOX 的纳米复合材料在杀死癌细胞方面表现出显著提高的效率。通过荧光显微镜证实了该系统的内吞作用和有效的药物释放特性。总的来说，我们相信，精心设计的 C-Dots@MSPs 纳米复合材料有望成为一种同时进行生物成像和药物递送的系统，为临床应用展示了更大的潜力。
