On‐Chip Self‐Assembly of a Smart Hybrid Nanocomposite for Antitumoral Applications

A hybrid nanocomposite comprised by porous silicon nanoparticles and a stimuli responsive polymeric material, polyethylene glycol‐block‐poly(L‐histidine), is spontaneously formed by nanoprecipitation in a flow‐focusing microfluidic chip. The nanocomposite presents a novel hybrid compound micelle structure with a great robustness for therapeutic applications. Therefore, the nanocomposite is developed and tested as a “smart” multistage drug delivery system (MDDS) in response to some of the current problems that cancer treatment presents. Based on the stimuli‐responsive behavior of the nanocomposite, a chemotherapeutic agent is successfully loaded into the nanosystem and released upon changes in the pH‐values. The nanocomposite demonstrates enhanced stability in plasma, narrow size distribution, improved surface smoothness, and high cytocompatibility. Furthermore, the nanocomposite presents reduced nanoparticle internalization by phagocytic macrophage cells and pH‐dependent cell growth inhibition capacity. Overall, the developed hybrid nanocomposite shows very promising features for its further development as a “smart” pH‐responsive MDDS.