Nano "Chocolate Waffle" for near-IR Responsive Drug Releasing System.

A majority of the photo-responsive drug-delivery systems that are currently being studied require a complicated synthesis method. Here, we prepare a near-infrared responsive, photothermally controllable, drug-delivery carrier by a simple mixing and extraction process without the incorporation of toxic chemicals. A blend of doxorubicin (DOX), an anticancer drug, and a phase-change material (PCM) are loaded onto the mesoporous structure of silica-coated graphene oxide (GO@MS) to form a waffle-like structure, which is confirmed by various physicochemical analyses. The cytotoxicity of DOX/PCM-loaded GO@MS (DOX/PCM-GO@MS) against HeLa cells is 50 times higher than that of free DOX, and this improved activity can be attributed to the photothermal effectiveness of GO@MS. Additionally, the cytotoxicity and uptake mechanism of the PCM-based material are analyzed by flow cytometry. Taken together, our results suggest an enormous potential for spatio-temporal control in photothermally responsive drug-delivery systems.