Nanogel–Carbon Dot Conjugates: A Synergistic Approach for Enhanced Cancer Treatment through Combination Therapy
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: The present study reports the development of a novel nanoconjugate, NG-FACD, comprising a positively charged self-assembled nanogel (NG) derived from a peptide amphiphilic hydrogelator and a negatively charged folic acid-functionalized blue-emitting carbon dot (FACD), bound via electrostatic interactions. NG-FACD was developed to combine the advantages of the individual nanocarriers and overcome their drawbacks. The presence of folic acid enables NG-FACD to be successfully used in selective bioimaging and targeted combination therapy against folate receptor-positive (FR+) B16F10 over FR– cells. NG-FACD demonstrated improved riboflavin (RbF) and paclitaxel (PTX) loading compared to individual nanocarriers that made it ∼1.8- and 1.5-fold more cytotoxic toward FR+ B16F10 cells over RbF- and PTX-loaded individual nanocarriers. The concurrent presence of RbF and PTX on NG-FACD displayed ∼1.9–2.8-fold higher cytotoxicity than single drug-loaded individual nanocarriers and ∼3–4.5-fold higher cytotoxicity through RbF-mediated photodynamic therapy and PTX-induced chemotherapy in synergy compared to free drugs against FR+ B16F10 cells.
Source: ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters
Authors: Sudeshna Pal, Rajarshi Mondal, Prasanta Kumar Das
Institution: Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
Award: G822460475
OpenAlex ID: W4402411510