Near-infrared light-responsive nanoparticles with thermosensitive yolk-shell structure for multimodal imaging and chemo-photothermal therapy of tumor

Thermosensitive yolk-shell nanoparticles were developed as remote-controlled targeting drug delivery platform for multimodal imaging and combined therapy of cancer. The nanoparticles were fabricated using magnetic Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles as photothermal cores, thermo-responsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-co-1-Vinyl-2-pyrrolidone p(NIPAM-co-NVP) as shells (Fe₃O₄-PNIPAM), with a hollow space between the two layers for loading of chemotherapeutic drug. The magnetic iron oxide nanoparticle cores could absorb and transform light to heat efficiently upon the irradiation of near infrared (NIR) laser, resulting in the shrink of the PNIPAM shell and the release of chemo-drugs. In vivo fluorescence/photoacoustic images demonstrated that Fe₃O₄-PNIPAM nanoparticles could accumulate in the tumor after intravenous injection. Upon the irradiation of the NIR laser, DOX-Fe₃O₄-PNIPAM nanoparticles exhibited outstanding synergistic effect. The tumor inhibition rate increased from 40.3% (DOX-Fe₃O₄-PNIPAM alone) and 65.2% (Fe₃O₄-PNIPAM +NIR) to 91.5%. The results demonstrated that the NIR-responsive nanocarrier offers a novel strategy for cancer theranostics and combined therapy of cancer.