Mitochondrial-Targeted Gold-Doped Porous Carbon Nanodots for Combined Photothermal and Photodynamic Therapy of Breast Cancer

• Published in: ACS applied nano materials Vol. 6; no. 8; pp. 7000 - 7010
• Main Authors: Zhang, Lirong, Yang, Mengyu, Li, Qianzhe, Zhuang, Zijian, Sun, Xin, Yu, Beibei, Qiu, Xiaonan, Wang, Qinxin, Zhang, Miaomiao, Du, Fengyi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Chemical Society 28.04.2023
• Subjects: anti-tumor; mitochondrial homeostasis; gold-doped carbon dots; photodynamic therapy; photothermal therapy
• ISSN: 2574-0970; 2574-0970
• DOI: 10.1021/acsanm.3c00953

Mitochondrial homeostasis has been proved to be a potential oncology therapeutic target, but there is still a huge technical challenge in developing an effective therapeutic regimen in clinic. Here, we developed triphenylphosphonium conjugated gold-doped porous carbon dots with 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) loading (T-CDs@Au/ALA nanodots) for mitochondrial-targeting combined therapy of breast cancer. Gold doping not only significantly enhanced the photothermal effect of T-CDs@Au/ALA nanodots but also enabled ALA (photosensitizer prodrug) loading via coordination interaction. Upon cellular internalization, the resultant T-CDs@Au/ALA nanodots were selectively enriched in the mitochondria and depleted glutathione, thus amplifying the reactive oxygen species damage caused by the accumulation of ALA-derived PpIX. Moreover, T-CDs@Au/ALA nanodots caused hyperthermia to further disrupt mitochondrial homeostasis for inducing the necrosis and apoptosis of tumor cells. Our study revealed that T-CDs@Au/ALA nanodots could use as an innovative mitochondrial homeostasis destroyer for synergistic phototherapy of breast cancer.