A PEGylated photosensitizer-core pH-responsive polymeric nanocarrier for imaging-guided combination chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy

Abstract

A novel chemo-photodynamic combined therapeutic self-assembly polymeric platform (MPEG-Hyd-Br₂-BODIPY) was constructed based on 2,6-diBr-BODIPY as the photosensitizer core and MPEG as the hydrophilic side chain through hydrazone bond linkage which can successfully encapsulate DOX and exhibited an accelerated release rate with decreasing pH value from 7.4 to 5.0 which results in considerable time/dose-dependent cytotoxicity. In addition, the photosensitizer moieties embedded in MPEG-Hyd-Br₂-BODIPY could generate singlet oxygen (¹O₂) effectively under light irradiation, which was expected to realize the synchronization therapy of chemo- and photodynamic therapy (PDT).