Construction and Evaluation of a Targeted Hyaluronic Acid Nanoparticle/Photosensitizer Complex for Cancer Photodynamic Therapy

• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.7b09331
• Publication Date: 2017-09-06T13:21:49Z
• Authors: Shi Gao; Jingjing Wang; Rui Tian; Guohao Wang; Liwen Zhang; Yesen Li; Lu Li; Qingjie Ma; Lei Zhu
• Keywords: Photosensitizing Agents; Porphyrins; 01 natural sciences; 0104 chemical sciences; 3. Good health; Mice; Photochemotherapy; Cell Line, Tumor; Animals; Humans; Nanoparticles; Hyaluronic Acid

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a novel treatment modality that under intensive preclinical investigations for variety of diseases, including cancer. Despite extensive studies in this area, selective and effective photodynamic agents can specifically accumulate tumors to reach therapeutic concentration are limited. Although recent attempts have produced photosensitizers (PSs) complexed with various nanomaterials, the tedious preparation steps poor tumor efficiency hamper their utilization. Here, we developed CD44-targeted nanophotodynamic agent by physically encapsulating photosensitizer, Ce6, into hyaluronic acid nanoparticle (HANP), which was hereby denoted HANP/Ce6. Its physical features capability were characterized vitro vivo. Systemic delivery HANP/Ce6 resulted its accumulation human colon cancer xenograft model. The tumor/muscle ratio reached 3.47 ± 0.46 at 4 h post injection, as confirmed fluorescence imaging. Tumor growth after laser irradiation (0.15 W/cm2, 630 nm) significantly inhibited 9.61 1.09-fold compared control groups, showed no change growth. No apparent systemic local toxic effects on mice observed. HANP/Ce6-mediated inhibition accessed observed first time 18F-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography early 1 day persisted 14 days within our window. In sum, results highlight imaging properties theranostic PDT may be potentially utilized clinic. This HANP system also applied other hydrophobic PSs, particularly those could not chemically modified.