Polydopamine Nanoparticle-Based Combined Chemotherapy and Photothermal Therapy for the Treatment of Liver Cancer

High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Polydopamine nanoparticles (PDA NPs) are proposed as an anti-cancer tool against hepatocellular carcinoma through the combination of near-infrared (NIR)-mediated hyperthermia and loading with a chemotherapeutic drug, sorafenib (SRF). Cell membranes isolated from a liver cancer cell line (HepG2) have been exploited for the coating of the nanoparticles (thus obtaining CM–SRF–PDA NPs), to promote homotypic targeting toward cancer cells. The selective targeting ability and the combined photothermal and chemotherapeutic activity of the CM–SRF–PDA NPs following NIR irradiation have been evaluated on cell cultures in static and dynamic conditions, besides three-dimensional culture models. Eventually, the therapeutic effectiveness of the proposed approach has also been tested ex ovo on HepG2 spheroid-grafted quail embryos. This comprehensive investigation, supported by proteomic analysis, showed the effectiveness of the proposed nanoplatform and strongly suggests further pre-clinical testing in the treatment of liver cancer.