RESUMO
A near-infrared (NIR)-responsive Aurod@pNIPAAm-PEGMA nanogel was synthesized in two steps, growing a PEGMA monolayer on the surface of gold nanorods (AuNRs), followed by in situ polymerization and cross-linking of N-iso-propylacrylamide (NIPAAm) and poly-(ethylene glycol)-methacrylate (PEGMA). The AuNRs and Aurod@pNIPAAm-PEGMA nanogel were characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy, respectively. The lower critical solution temperature of the Aurod@pNIPAAm-PEGMA nanogel could be tuned by changing the molar ratio of NIPAAm/PEGMA. The NIR-mediated drug release behavior of the Aurod@pNIPAAm-PEGMA nanogel was studied with zinc phthalocyanines (ZnPc4) as a drug model. It was also demonstrated that the loaded ZnPc4 could keep the capability of generating singlet oxygen, and the in vitro study showed a great photodynamic therapy (PDT) effect on Hela cells. It thus indicated the potential of this Aurod@pNIPAAm-PEGMA nanogel for application as a drug carrier in PDT, which might make contributions to oncotherapy.
RESUMO
The toxicity and biodistribution in vivo of various morphologies of Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) were studied by using KM mice. The quantitative analysis of Au in each tissue of mice was done by using the Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Sphere-shaped AuNPs displayed the best biocompatibility, compared with rod- and cube-shaped of AuNPs, and rod-shaped AuNPs was more toxic than cube-shaped AuNPs. In vivo biodistribution study revealed all AuNPs were preferentially accumulated in organ of liver and spleen. The findings from this study thus revealed that the toxicity and biodistribution in vivo of AuNPs are shape dependent.