Construction of nano-assembly for mild photothermal therapy of tumors

Abstract

Due to the high incidence and mortality rates of cancer, it is necessary to seek more targeted and effective treatment methods. Traditional cancer treatment methods have problems such as incomplete treatment and significant side effects. In recent years, photothermal therapy (PTT) has been considered one of the most promising treatment methods in the biomedical field. The treatment principle of PTT is to use materials with high photothermal conversion efficiency to absorb near-infrared light (NIR) and generate heat to ablate tumors. PTT has the advantages of low toxicity, non-invasiveness, strong specificity, and high controllability. However, the self-protective mechanism related to heat shock proteins (HSPs) gives cancer cells thermal tolerance. To minimize the thermal tolerance of cancer cells and improve the efficacy of PTT, a nano-assembly composed of Pluronic F-127 encapsulating the HSP inhibitor APO and the high photothermal conversion efficiency photosensitizer Cy7-TCF has been developed. The nano-assembly can accumulate at the tumor site and generate heat under near-infrared light irradiation. At the same time, it inhibits the expression of heat shock proteins, achieving the effect of mild photothermal therapy and reducing thermal damage to surrounding tissues.