Integrin α_vβ₃-targeted polydopamine-coated gold nanostars for photothermal ablation therapy of hepatocellular carcinoma

Photothermal therapy (PTT) has emerged as a promising cancer therapeutic method. In this study, Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) peptide-conjugated polydopamine-coated gold nanostars (Au@PDA-RGD NPs) were prepared for targeting PTT of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A polydopamine (PDA) shell was coated on the surface of gold nanostars by the oxidative self-polymerization of dopamine (termed as Au@PDA NPs). Au@PDA NPs were further functionalized with polyethylene glycol and RGD peptide to improve biocompatibility as well as selectivity toward the HCC cells. Au@PDA-RGD NPs showed an intense absorption at 822 nm, which makes them suitable for near-infrared-excited PTT. Our results indicated that the Au@PDA-RGD NPs were effective for the PTT therapy of the α_Vβ₃ integrin receptor-overexpressed HepG2 cells in vitro. Further antitumor mechanism studies showed that the Au@PDA-RGD NPs-based PTT induced human liver cancer cells death via the mitochondrial-lysosomal and autophagy pathways. In vivo experiments showed that Au@PDA-RGD NPs had excellent tumor treatment efficiency and negligible side effects. Thus, our study showed that Au@PDA-RGD NPs could offer an excellent nanoplatform for PTT of HCC.