Oxygen-deficient tungsten oxide perovskite nanosheets-based photonic nanomedicine for cancer theranostics

Abstract

• A 2D drug-delivery platform based on perovskite WO 2.9 nanosheets was constructed. • PEG@WO 2.9 @DOX exhibits excellent photothermal performance in NIR-II bio-window. • PEG@WO 2.9 @DOX shows fluorescence/PA/CT/photothermal multimodal imaging capability. Tungsten Oxide (WO 3 ) is a typical perovskite semiconductor with layered structure. In this work, an advanced two-dimensional (2D) photonic drug-delivery platform based on PEGylated WO 2.9 (a substoichiometric form of WO 3 ) nanosheets (NSs) is explored. The developed platform have multiple merits such as: i) excellent photothermal performance in near-infrared-II (NIR-II) biowindow, ii) high drug load efficiency, iii) controlled drug release activated via NIR-II light or weakly acidic pH, iv) efficient tumor accumulation, v) deep tumor penetration through both exogenous stimuli (i.e. NIR-II light) or endogenous stimuli (i.e. weakly acidic in tumor), vi) good fluorescence/ photoacoustic (PA)/computerized tomography (CT)/photothermal multimodal imaging capability, and vii) significant tumor growth inhibition without obvious side effects. These particular advantages can provide valuable experiences for addressing several limitations in the development of cancer nanomedicines. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time to study 2D WO 2.9 NSs-based photonic nanomedicine, which may make an exciting jumping-off point for the study of the application of WO 2.9 NSs in cancer theranostics.