Antimonene Quantum Dots: Synthesis and Application as Near-Infrared Photothermal Agents for Effective Cancer Therapy.

ABSTRACT: Photothermal therapy (PTT) has shown significant potential for cancer therapy. However, developing nanomaterials (NMs)-based photothermal agents (PTAs) with satisfactory photothermal conversion efficacy (PTCE) and biocompatibility remains a key challenge. Herein, a new generation of PTAs based on two-dimensional (2D) antimonene quantum dots (AMQDs) was developed by a novel liquid exfoliation method. Surface modification of AMQDs with polyethylene glycol (PEG) significantly enhanced both biocompatibility and stability in physiological medium. The PEG-coated AMQDs showed a PTCE of 45.5?%, which is higher than many other NMs-based PTAs such as graphene, Au, MoS2 , and black phosphorus (BP). The AMQDs-based PTAs also exhibited a unique feature of NIR-induced rapid degradability. Through both in?vitro and in?vivo studies, the PEG-coated AMQDs demonstrated notable NIR-induced tumor ablation ability. This work is expected to expand the utility of 2D antimonene (AM) to biomedical applications through the development of an entirely novel PTA platform.

SUBMITTER: Tao W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5608550 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature