NIR Light-Triggered Chemo-Phototherapy by ICG Functionalized MWNTs for Synergistic Tumor-Targeted Delivery

The combinational application of photothermal therapy (PTT), chemotherapy, and nanotechnology is a booming therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment. Multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWNT) is often utilized as drug carrier in biomedical fields with excellent photothermal properties, and indocyanine green (ICG) is a near-infrared (NIR) dye approved by FDA. In addition, ICG is also a photothermal agent that can strongly absorb light energy for tumor ablation. Herein, we explored a synergistic strategy by connecting MWNT and a kind of ICG derivate ICG-NH₂ through hyaluronic acid (HA) that possesses CD44 receptor targeting ability, which largely enhanced the PTT effect of both MWNT and ICG-NH₂. To realize the synergistic therapeutic effect of chemotherapy and phototherapy, doxorubicin (DOX) was attached on the wall of MWNT via π-π interaction to obtain the final MWNT-HA-ICG/DOX nanocomplexes. Both in vitro and in vivo experiments verified the great therapeutic efficacy of MWNT-HA-ICG/DOX nanocomplexes, which was characterized by improved photothermal performance, strengthened cytotoxicity, and elevated tumor growth inhibition based on MCF-7 tumor models. Therefore, this synergistic strategy we report here might offer a new idea with promising application prospect for cancer treatment.