Juqun Xi, Lanyue Da, Changshui Yang, Rui Chen, Lizeng Gao, Lei Fan, Jie Han

Nanoparticle drug delivery carriers, which can implement high performances of multi-functions, are of great interest, especially for improving cancer therapy. Herein, we reported a new approach to construct Mn(2+)-coordinated doxorubicin (DOX)-loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles as a platform for synergistic chemo-photothermal tumor therapy. DOX-loaded PLGA (DOX/PLGA) nanoparticles were first synthesized through a double emulsion-solvent evaporation method, and then modified with polydopamine (PDA) through self-polymerization of dopamine, leading to the formation of PDA@DOX/PLGA nanoparticles. Mn(2+) ions were then coordinated on the surfaces of PDA@DOX/PLGA to obtain Mn(2+)-PDA@DOX/PLGA nanoparticles. In our system, Mn(2+)-PDA@DOX/PLGA nanoparticles could destroy tumors in a mouse model directly, by thermal energy deposition, and could also simulate the chemotherapy by thermal-responsive delivery of DOX to enhance tumor therapy. Furthermore, the coordination of Mn(2+) could afford the high magnetic resonance (MR) imaging capability with sensitivity to temperature and pH. The results demonstrated that Mn(2+)-PDA@ DOX/PLGA nanoparticles had a great potential as a smart theranostic agent due to their imaging and tumor-growth-inhibition properties.