Rational design of copper(I)-doped metal-organic frameworks as dual-functional nanocarriers for combined
Lijia Yao1, Bingquan Chen2, Hailong Wu1
1State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, ZJU-Hangzhou Global Scientific and Technological Innovation Center, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China. cuiyj@zju.edu.cn.
Abstract:
Combination therapies are an increasingly important part of the antitumor medicine armamentarium. However, developing desirable nanomaterials for combination therapies is still a great challenge. Herein, a biocompatible Cu(I)-doped metal-organic framework (MOF) (denoted as CuZn-ZIF) is designed as a novel dual-functional nanocarrier. Doxorubicin molecules are covalently bound to the surface of the CuZn-ZIF and released by the cleavage of chemical bonds in an acidic environment, demonstrating the capacity of controlled drug release. More importantly, CuZn-ZIF nanocarriers can simultaneously play the role of nanocatalysts, capable of catalyzing H2O2 into a highly reactive intracellular toxic hydroxyl radical (˙OH). An in vivo study reveals that nanoparticles exhibit high antitumor efficacy through the combined performance of DOX and Cu(I), proving the great potential of this copper(I)-based MOF for combined chemo-chemotherapy to improve therapeutic efficacy.
