Abstract
Multifunctional core-shell nanocarriers based on zinc oxide (ZnO)-gated magnetic mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MMSN) were prepared for cancer treatment through magnetic targeting and pH-triggered controlled drug release. Under an external magnetic field, the MMSN could actively deliver chemotherapeutic agent, daunomycin (DNM), to the targeted sites. At neutral aqueous, the functionalized MMSN could stably accommodate the DNM molecules since the mesopores were capped by the ZnO gatekeepers. In contrast, at the acid intercellular environment, the gatekeepers would be removed to control the release of drugs due to the dissolution of ZnO. Meanwhile, ZnO quantum dots not only rapidly dissolve in an acidic condition of cancer cells but also enhance the anti-cancer effect of Zn2+. An in vitro controlled release proliferation indicated that the acid sensitive ZnO gatekeepers showed well response by the ‘on-off’ switch of the pores. Cellular experiments against cervical cancer cell (HeLa cells) further showed that functionalized MMSN significantly suppressed cancer cells growth through synergistic effects between the chemotherapy and Zn2+ ions with monitoring the treatment process. These results suggested that the ZnO-gated MMSN platform is a promising approach to serve as a pH-sensitive system for chemotherapies delivery and Zn2+ controlled release for further application in the treatment of various cancers by synergistic effects.
Highlights
In recent decades, nanomaterials and nanoparticles (NPs) served as drug delivery systems have been apace developed to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment while with minimum side effects of anti-cancer drugs in the health tissues (Gomes et al, 2014; Cheng et al, 2017c; Liang et al, 2018)
The condensation occurs in the presence of sodium hydroxide, which is a basic catalyst for the hydrolysis of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) (Harris et al, 1990)
The construction of this drug-loading system gave the possibility of pH response characteristics of these nanocarriers. This results in faster drug release at acidic pH, but it is interesting to note that the zinc oxide (ZnO) quantum dots (QDs) coating remains relatively stable under physiological conditions
Summary
Nanomaterials and nanoparticles (NPs) served as drug delivery systems have been apace developed to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment while with minimum side effects of anti-cancer drugs in the health tissues (Gomes et al, 2014; Cheng et al, 2017c; Liang et al, 2018). A variety of nanocarriers, including lipids, polymers, viruses and even inorganic NPs, has been developed as vehicles for drug delivery applications (Kozlova et al, 2012; Wang et al, 2014, 2013; Liu et al, 2016b, 2019; Cheng et al, 2017a). Among these nanocarriers, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) have been extensively investigated as promising drug-delivered carriers due to their high surface area, good biocompatibility, excellent water dispersibility, well-defined pore size and modifiable surface (Cho & Borgens, 2010; Zhao et al, 2015; Chang et al, 2016; Cheng et al, 2017b). Due to the core-shell structures, MMSN can allow the single nanocomposite to exert multifunctions including targeted delivery ability, therapy and imaging (Zhao et al, 2014; Verma et al, 2015)
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