Radionuclide ¹⁸⁸Re‐Loaded Photothermal Hydrogel for Cancer Theranostics

Abstract Herein, an injectable photothermal hydrogel system containing a therapeutic radionuclide ¹⁸⁸Re is studied for combined radioisotope therapy and photothermal therapy (PTT) of cancer. A dopamine‐conjugated poly(α,β‐aspartic acid) copolymer (PDAEA) is used to trigger a sol–gel phase transition in mixture with Fe³⁺ ions, rapidly forming a gel by simply mixing PDAEA and FeCl₃ phosphate buffer saline solutions. The injectable hydrogel exhibits strong near‐infrared light absorbance and can efficiently convert light into a heating effect for local PTT treatment. The obtained hydrogel possesses a porous 3D microstructure, and can be utilized for radionuclide loading. After the Na¹⁸⁸ReO₄ loading, the hydrogel is intratumorally injected into the tumor of mice bearing 4T1 murine breast cancer cells for studying the tumor retention and therapeutic efficiency. In vivo results show that Na¹⁸⁸ReO₄‐loaded hydrogel exhibits significantly longer time in the tumor sites than that of free Na¹⁸⁸ReO₄. The tumor growth of mice treated with Na¹⁸⁸ReO₄‐loaded hydrogel under near‐infrared radiation is significantly inhibited compared with control groups. Therefore, the results show that the developed strategy using an injectable and biocompatible hydrogel may promote the applications of radioisotope therapy and photothermal therapy for cancer.