1. Rational design of a minimum nanoplatform for maximizing therapeutic potency: Three birds with one stone.
- Author
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Lai C, Zhang B, Li D, Tan X, Luo B, Shen J, Li L, and Shao J
- Subjects
- Humans, Phototherapy methods, Photosensitizing Agents pharmacology, Photosensitizing Agents chemistry, Cell Line, Tumor, Antineoplastic Agents chemistry, Neoplasms drug therapy, Neoplasms pathology, Nanoparticles chemistry
- Abstract
Therapeutic modalities and drug formulations play a crucial and prominent role in actualizing effective treatment and radical cures of tumors. However, the therapeutic efficiency was severely limited by tumor recurrence and complex multi-step preparation of formulation. Therefore, the exploration of novel nanoparticles via a simple and green synthesis process for conquering traditional obstacles and improving therapeutic efficiency is an appealing, yet remarkably challenging task. Herein, a universal nanoplatform allows all cancerous cell-targeting, acid-responsive, cell imaging, synergistic chemotherapy, and nucleolar targeted phototherapy function was tactfully designed and constructed by using chemotherapeutic agents ursolic acid (UA), sorafenib (SF), and carbon dots (CDs) photosensitizers (PSs). The designed US NPs were formed by self-assembly of UA and SF associated with electrostatic, π-π stacking, and hydrophobic interactions. After hydrogen bonding reaction with CDs, the obtained (denoted as USC NPs) have a relatively uniform size of an average 125.6 nm, which facilitated the favorable accumulation of drugs at the tumor region through a potential enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect as compared to their counterpart of free CDs solution. Both in vitro and in vivo studies revealed that the advanced platform commenced synergistic anticancer therapeutic potency, imperceptible systematical toxicity, and remarkable reticence towards drug-resistant cancer cells. Moreover, the CDs PSs possess intrinsic nucleolus-targeting ability. Taken together, this theranostics system can fully play the role of "killing three birds with one stone" in a safe manner, implying a promising direction for exploring treatment strategies for cancer and endowing them with great potential for future translational research and providing a new vision for the advancing of an exceptionally forceful protocol for practical cancer therapy., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Inc.)
- Published
- 2023
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