Surface Chemistry Dependent "Switch" Regulates the Trafficking and Therapeutic Performance of Drug-Loaded Carbon Nanotubes

The present study explores the possibility of exploiting surface functionality as one of the key regulators for modulating the intracellular trafficking and therapeutic performance of drug loaded carbon nanotubes (CNTs). In line with that approach, a series of biofunctionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (f-CNTs 1-6) decorated with various functional molecules including antifouling polymer (PEG), tumor recognition modules (folic acid/hyaluronic acid/estradiol), and fluorophores (rhodamine B isothiocyanate/Alexa Fluor) were synthesized. By loading different anticancer agents (methotrexate (MTX), doxorubicin (DOX), and paclitaxel (PTX)) onto each functionalized CNT preparation, we tried to elucidate how the surface functional molecules associated with each f-CNT influence their therapeutic potential. We observed that antiproliferative or apoptotic activity of drug-loaded CNTs critically depends on their mechanistic pathway of cellular internalization and intracellular trafficking, which in turn had an intimate rapport with their surface chemistry. To our knowledge, for the first time, we have embarked on the possibility of using a surface chemistry dependent "switch" to remote-control the second and third order targeting of chemotherapeutic agents supramolecularly complexed/adsorbed on CNTs, which in turn is expected to benefit the development of futuristic nanobots for cancer theranostics.