Hyaluronic Acid-Encapsulated Platinum Nanoparticles for Targeted Photothermal Therapy of Breast Cancer

Abstract

Targeted photothermal therapy (PTT) can improve the therapeutic outcomes and reduce side effects in cancer treatment. However, additional functionality means additional synthetic steps, increased risk of toxicity and complex behavior and effects <i>in vivo</i>. Herein, we developed a one-pot method to prepare tumor-targeted photothermal nanoparticles. Hyaluronic acid (HA), an anionic glycosaminoglycan that targets tumors via overexpressed cluster determinant 44 (CD44), was used as a polymer stabilizer to synthesize HA-encapsulated platinum nanoparticles (HA/Pt). The <i>in vitro</i> experiments demonstrated that HA/Pt were more efficiently internalized by cancer cells overexpressing CD44 compared with the non-tumor targeting alginate acid-encapsulated Pt nanoparticles (AA/Pt). The <i>in vivo</i> studies revealed that HA/Pt accumulated more in CD44-overexpressing tumor than AA/Pt, and more efficiently inhibited tumor growth via PTT. Our study developed an innovative method for facile fabrication of tumor-targeting photothermal nanoparticles.