Near-infrared absorbing mesoporous carbon nanoparticle as an intelligent drug carrier for dual-triggered synergistic cancer therapy

Herein a novel multifunctional nanoplatform based on surface engineered mesoporous carbon nanoparticle (MCN) is developed for effective dual-triggered synergistic cancer therapy. MCNs employed in the study not only function as near-infrared absorbing agents but also as nanocarriers with a high drug loading efficiency. The surface modification of MCN with biomacromolecules (hyaluronic acid) through disulfide unit makes the system be sensitive to both intracellular hyaluronidase-1 and GSH to release the carried drug. The hyaluronic acid on MCN simultaneously confers the system biocompatibility and a cancer cell targeting ability. By combining these capabilities, the multifunctional nanoplatform shows an effective therapeutic efficiency toward the target cells. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.