| 초록 |
Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been investigated as a photothermal agent for cancer treatment because AuNPs generate localized heat upon near-infrared irradiation. In this study, we combine pH-sensitive gold nanoparticles (PSAuNPs) and tumor-tropic mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for effective photothermal cancer therapy. PSAuNPs loaded in MSCs are aggregated in mildly acidic endosomes, which increases the cellular retention of nanoparticles by preventing their exocytosis and enhances the photothermal effect by extending surface plasmon resonance effect. PSAuNP-laden MSCs (MSC-PSAuNPs) are actively migrated into tumor tissues, which improves the tumor-targeting efficiency and intratumoral distribution of these nanostructures. MSC-PSAuNPs show a 37-fold higher tumor-targeting efficiency (5.6 % of the injected dose) and 8.3 °C higher heat generation compared to cAuNPs, which results in a significantly enhanced anticancer effect. |
