Abstract
For over a decade, advancements in ultrasound-enhanced drug delivery strategies have demonstrated remarkable success in providing targeted drug delivery for a broad range of diseases. In order to achieve enhanced drug delivery, these strategies harness the mechanical effects from bubble oscillations (i.e., cavitation) of a variety of exogenous cavitation agents. Recently, solid cavitation agents have emerged due to their capacity for drug-loading and sustained cavitation duration. Unlike other cavitation agents, solid cavitation agents stabilize gaseous bubbles on hydrophobic surface cavities. Thus, the design of these particles is crucial. In this Review, we provide an overview of the different designs for solid cavitation agents such as nanocups, nanocones, and porous structures, as well as the current status of their development. Considering the numerous advantages of solid cavitation agents, we anticipate further innovations for this new type of cavitation agent across a broad range of biomedical applications.
Highlights
Ultrasound is a well-established imaging modality and is rapidly becoming an attractive therapeutic modality for ablation[1 ], histotripsy[2 ], and enhanced drug delivery[3] owing to its controllability, safety, and cost effectiveness
Considering the growing interest in solid cavitation agents, we aim to provide an overview on the current trends in the design and application of solid cavitation agents in this report
After Pluronic HMSN (P-hMSN) were added to fetal bovine serum and whole blood, cavitation was still observable, though there was found to be a drop in signal of 20% and 35% respectively compared to that of signal in PBS44
Summary
Ultrasound is a well-established imaging modality and is rapidly becoming an attractive therapeutic modality for ablation[1 ], histotripsy[2 ], and enhanced drug delivery[3] owing to its controllability, safety, and cost effectiveness. This combinational therapy made a demonstrable reduction in tumor volume with associated improved survival rates compared to control, ultrasound-only, and light irradiation-only groups[66] Such an improvement to treatment may be attributed to the improved penetration and distribution of gold nanoparticles throughout the cancerous tissue (as suggested by the gold nanocones). All of the designs for solid cavitation agents revolved around a solid core substrate with multiple pores or a single surface cavity Another approach utilizes the aggregation of gold nanoparticles, which reportedly stabilize a gaseous core (akin to microbubbles). The gold nanoparticles ejected by SAuNPs during ultrasound exposure aggregated in the acidic conditions of the cancer cells, enhancing the photothermal effect This aggregation, along with increased delivery into the cells due to cavitation induced sonoporation, decreased the required systemic dose of gold nanoparticles for photothermal therapy compared to previous work (Figure 7). It is clear and evident that the design of each solid cavitation agent plays a crucial role for enhancing therapy for specific applications
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