College of Chemistry, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610064, P. R. China; Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, P. R. China.
Small. 2014 Oct 29;10(20):4160-70. doi: 10.1002/smll.201401237. Epub 2014 Jun 30.
Light-triggered drug delivery based on near-infrared (NIR)-mediated photothermal nanocarriers has received tremendous attention for the construction of cooperative therapeutic systems in nanomedicine. Herein, a new paradigm of light-responsive drug carrier that doubles as a photothermal agent is reported based on the NIR light-absorber, Rb(x) WO3 (rubidium tungsten bronze, Rb-TB) nanorods. With doxorubicin (DOX) payload, the DOX-loaded Rb-TB composite (Rb-TB-DOX) simultaneously provides a burst-like drug release and intense heating effect upon 808-nm NIR light exposure. MTT assays show the photothermally enhanced antitumor activity of Rb-TB-DOX to the MCF-7 cancer cells. Most remarkably, Rb-TB-DOX combined with NIR irradiation also shows dramatically enhanced chemotherapeutic effect to DOX-resistant MCF-7 cells compared with free DOX, demonstrating the enhanced efficacy of combinational chemo-photothermal therapy for potentially overcoming drug resistance in cancer chemotherapy. Furthermore, in vivo study of combined chemo-photothermal therapy is also conducted and realized on pancreatic (Pance-1) tumor-bearing nude mice. Apart from its promise for cancer therapy, the as-prepared Rb-TB can also be employed as a new dual-modal contrast agent for photoacoustic tomography and (PAT) X-ray computed tomography (CT) imaging because of its high NIR optical absorption capability and strong X-ray attenuation ability, respectively. The results presented in the current study suggest promise of the multifunctional Rb(x)WO3 nanorods for applications in cancer theranostics.
基于近红外（NIR）介导的光热纳米载体的光触发药物输送在纳米医学中构建协同治疗系统方面受到了极大的关注。在此，我们报道了一种基于 NIR 吸收体 Rb(x)WO3（铷钨青铜，Rb-TB）纳米棒的新型光响应药物载体的范例，该载体同时作为光热剂。负载多柔比星（DOX）后，负载 DOX 的 Rb-TB 复合材料（Rb-TB-DOX）在 808nm NIR 光照射下同时提供爆发式药物释放和强烈的加热效应。MTT 测定表明 Rb-TB-DOX 对 MCF-7 癌细胞的光热增强抗肿瘤活性。最显著的是，与游离 DOX 相比，Rb-TB-DOX 与 NIR 照射联合还表现出对 DOX 耐药 MCF-7 细胞的显著增强的化学-光热治疗效果，表明联合化学-光热治疗在克服癌症化疗中的药物耐药性方面具有增强的疗效。此外，还对荷胰腺（Pance-1）肿瘤的裸鼠进行了联合化学-光热治疗的体内研究。除了在癌症治疗方面的应用前景外，由于其高 NIR 光吸收能力和强 X 射线衰减能力，所制备的 Rb-TB 还可以用作光声断层扫描和（PAT）X 射线计算机断层扫描（CT）成像的新型双模态对比剂。本研究结果表明多功能 Rb(x)WO3 纳米棒在癌症治疗中的应用具有广阔的前景。
