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Theranostics 2018; 8(3):663-675. doi:10.7150/thno.21927 This issue Cite

Research Paper

Mesoporous Carbon Nanospheres as a Multifunctional Carrier for Cancer Theranostics

Libo Zhou¹, Ying Jing¹, Yubin Liu³, Zhihe Liu¹, Duyang Gao³, Haobin Chen¹, Weiye Song¹, Tao Wang¹, Xiaofeng Fang¹, Weiping Qin¹, Zhen Yuan³, Sheng Dai⁴, Zhen-An Qiao^1✉, Changfeng Wu^2✉

1. State Key Laboratory on Integrated Optoelectronics, College of Electronic Science and Engineering; State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparation Chemistry, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Changchun 130012, China;
2. Department of Biomedical Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China;
3. Bioimaging Core, Faculty of Health Science, University of Macau Taipa, Macau SAR, 999078, China;
4. Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.

✉ Corresponding authors: Zhen-An Qiao, E-mail: qiaozhenanedu.cn Changfeng Wu, E-mail: wucfedu.cn

Abstract

Optical nanomaterials with intense absorption in near-infrared (NIR) region hold great promise for biomedical applications such as photothermal therapy (PTT) and photoacoustic imaging (PAI). In this work, we report mesoporous carbon nanospheres (Meso-CNs) with broadband and intense absorption in the UV-Vis-NIR region (300-1400 nm) and explore their potential as a multifunctional platform for photoacoustic imaging and chemo-photothermal therapy.

Methods: Meso-CNs were prepared by a “silica-assisted” synthesis strategy and characterized by transmission electron microscope and optical spectroscopy. We investigated the photothermal conversion and photoacoustic imaging of Meso-CNs in comparison with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), graphene and gold nanorods (GNRs). In vitro cellular assays and in vivo chemo-photothermal combination therapy were performed.

Results: The absorption coefficients of Meso-CNs are 1.5-2 times higher than those of SWCNTs and graphene and are comparable to those of GNRs in both the first and the second near-infrared optical windows (NIR-I and NIR-II) of tissues. When exposed to an NIR laser, the photothermal and photoacoustic signal generation of Meso-CNs are also stronger than those of SWCNTs, graphene, and GNRs. DOX was loaded into Meso-CNs with a high efficiency (35 wt%) owing to the unique mesoporous structure. Particularly, the drug release from Meso-CNs is sensitive to both pH and NIR light stimulation. In vivo chemo-photothermal combination therapy demonstrates a remarkable inhibition effect on tumor growth under NIR laser treatment.

Conclusions: We have developed Meso-CNs for photothermal conversion and photoacoustic imaging. The porous structure also serves as a drug carrier and the drug release can be controlled by pH and external light. The high drug loading capacity, superior photothermal and photoacoustic generation, together with the apparent chemo-photothermal therapeutic effect, make Meso-CNs a promising platform for cancer theranostics.

Keywords: mesoporous carbon nanospheres, near-infrared absorption, drug delivery, photoacoustic imaging, photothermal therapy.

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