title: Hydrophilic Cu9S5 nanocrystals: a photothermal agent with a 25.7% heat conversion efficiency for photothermal ablation of cancer cells in vivo.
abstract: Photothermal ablation (PTA) therapy has a great potential to revolutionize conventional therapeutic approaches for cancers, but it has been limited by difficulties in obtaining biocompatible photothermal agents that have low cost, small size (<100 nm), and high photothermal conversion efficiency. Herein, we have developed hydrophilic plate-like Cu(9)S(5) nanocrystals (NCs, a mean size of ∼70 nm × 13 nm) as a new photothermal agent, which are synthesized by combining a thermal decomposition and ligand exchange route. The aqueous dispersion of as-synthesized Cu(9)S(5) NCs exhibits an enhanced absorption (e.g., ∼1.2 × 10(9) M(-1) cm(-1) at 980 nm) with the increase of wavelength in near-infrared (NIR) region, which should be attributed to localized surface plasmon resonances (SPR) arising from p-type carriers. The exposure of the aqueous dispersion of Cu(9)S(5) NCs (40 ppm) to 980 nm laser with a power density of 0.51 W/cm(2) can elevate its temperature by 15.1 °C in 7 min; a 980 nm laser heat conversion efficiency reaches as high as 25.7%, which is higher than that of the as-synthesized Au nanorods (23.7% from 980 nm laser) and the recently reported Cu(2-x)Se NCs (22% from 808 nm laser). Importantly, under the irradiation of 980 nm laser with the conservative and safe power density over a short period (∼10 min), cancer cells in vivo can be efficiently killed by the photothermal effects of the Cu(9)S(5) NCs. The present finding demonstrates the promising application of the Cu(9)S(5) NCs as an ideal photothermal agent in the PTA of in vivo tumor tissues.
authors: State Key Laboratory for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Donghua University, Shanghai 201620, China.
authors: Qiwei
authors: Q
authors: Tian
authors: Feiran
authors: F
authors: Jiang
authors: Rujia
authors: R
authors: Zou
authors: Qian
authors: Q
authors: Liu
authors: Zhigang
authors: Z
authors: Chen
authors: Meifang
authors: M
authors: Zhu
authors: Shiping
authors: S
authors: Yang
authors: Jinglong
authors: J
authors: Wang
authors: Jianhua
authors: J
authors: Wang
authors: Junqing
authors: J
authors: Hu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D003300:Copper / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry*; D004735:Energy Transfer / Q000187:drug effects; D006358:Hot Temperature; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D016513:Mice, SCID; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry*; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D017319:Photosensitizing Agents; D003300:Copper; C017846:cupric sulfide