Gold nanosphere gated mesoporous silica nanoparticle responsive to near-infrared light and redox potential as a theranostic platform for cancer therapy

A gold/mesoporous silica hybrid nanoparticle (GoMe), which possesses the best of both conventional gold nanoparticles and mesoporous silica nanoparticles, such as excellent photothermal converting ability as well as high drug loading capacity and triggerable drug release, has been developed. In contrast to gold nanorod and other heat generating gold nanoparticles, GoMe is photothermal stable and can be repetitively activated through NIR irradiation. Doxorubicin loaded GoMe (DOX@GoMe) is sensitive to both NIR irradiation and intracellularly elevated redox potential. DOX@GoMe coupled with NIR irradiation exhibits a synergistic effect of photothermal therapy and chemotherapy in killing cancer cells. Furthermore, ⁶⁴Cu-labeled GoMe can successfully detect the existence of clinically relevant spontaneous lung tumors in a urethane-induced lung cancer mouse model through PET imaging. Altogether, GoMe can be utilized as an effective theranostic platform for cancer therapy.