NIR-Responsive Lysosomotropic Phototrigger: ʽAIE + ESIPTʼ Active Naphthalene Based Single Component Photoresponsive Nanocarrier with Two-Photon Uncaging and Real-Time Monitoring Ability

In recent times, organelle-targeted drug delivery systems gained tremendous attention due to the site specific delivery of active drug molecules resulting in enhanced bioefficacy. In this context, the phototriggered drug delivery system (DDS) for releasing an active molecule is superior as it provides spatial and temporal control over the release. So far, near infrared (NIR) light responsive organelle targeted DDS has not yet been developed. Hence, we introduced a two-photon NIR-light responsive lysosome targeted ʽAIE + ESIPTʼ active single component DDS based on naphthalene chromophore. The Two-photon absorption cross-section of our DDS is 142 GM at 850 nm. The DDS was converted into pure organic nanoparticles for biological applications. Our nano-DDS is capable of selective targeting, AIE-luminogenic imaging, and drug release within the lysosome. In vitro studies using cancerous cell lines showed that our single component photoresponsive nanocarrier exhibited enhanced cytotoxicity and real-time monitoring ability of the drug release.