Multifunctional Smart Yolk–Shell Nanostructure with Mesoporous MnO2 Shell for Enhanced Cancer Therapy

• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c08389
• Publication Date: 2020-08-11T07:48:32Z
• Authors: Hongjun Zhuang; Mengyao Zhao; Shenglong Ding; Lingyan Liu; Wei Yuan; Liping Jiang; Xuemin Han; Libo Jiang; Tao Yi
• Keywords: Drug Carriers; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Photosensitizing Agents; Infrared Rays; Optical Imaging; Antineoplastic Agents; Oxides; 01 natural sciences; Nanostructures; 0104 chemical sciences; 3. Good health; Methylene Blue; Mice; Manganese Compounds; Photochemotherapy; Doxorubicin; Neoplasms; Animals; Humans; Female; Reactive Oxygen Species; Porosity; HeLa Cells

Manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanostructures have aroused great interest among analytical and biological medicine researchers as a unique type of tumor microenvironment (TME)-responsive nanomaterial. However, reliable approaches for synthesizing yolk-shell nanostructures (YSNs) with mesoporous MnO2 shell still remain exciting challenges. Herein, a YSN (size, ∼75 nm) containing a mesoporous MnO2 shell and Er3+-doped upconversion/downconversion nanoparticle (UCNP) core with a large cavity is demonstrated for the first time. This nanostructure not only integrates diverse functional components including MnO2, UCNPs, and YSNs into one system but also endows a size-controllable hollow cavity and thickness-tunable MnO2 layers, which can load various guest molecules like photosensitizers, methylene blue (MB), and the anticancer drugs doxorubicin (DOX). NIR-II fluorescence and photoacoustic (PA) imaging from UCNP and MB, respectively, can monitor the enrichment of the nanomaterials in the tumors for guiding chemo-photodynamic therapy (PDT) in vivo. In the TME, degradation of the mMnO2 shell by H2O2 and GSH not only generates Mn2+ for tumor-specific T1-MR imaging but also releases O2 and drugs for tumor-specific treatment. The result confirmed that imaging-guided enhanced chemo-PDT combination therapy that benefited from the unique structural features of YSNs could substantially improve the therapeutic effectiveness toward malignant tumors compared to monotherapy.