title: CuInS(2) quantum dots/poly((L)-glutamic acid)-drug conjugates for drug delivery and cell imaging.
abstract: A new anticancer drug delivery system was developed based on the electrostatic complex of positively charged CuInS2 quantum dots (QDs) and negatively charged poly(l-glutamic acid) (PGA) conjugated with the model anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX). Water-soluble near-infrared CuInS2 QDs capped with l-cysteine were directly synthesized by a hydrothermal method. DOX can quench the photoluminescence of CuInS2 QDs in QDs/PGA-DOX nanoparticles through a photoinduced electron transfer process, thus CuInS2 QDs are in the fluorescence "turn-off" state. After the QDs/PGA-DOX nanoparticles are exposed to carboxypeptidase or are taken up by cancer cells, PGA is hydrolysed to release DOX, inducing activation of the CuInS2 QDs fluorescence to the "turn-on" state. The QDs/PGA-DOX nanoparticles can deliver DOX to targeted cancer cells and monitor the DOX release based on the fluorescence "turn-on" signal of CuInS2 QDs, and this could be simultaneously used for the imaging of cancer cells. The multifunctional QDs/PGA-DOX nanoparticles have great potential in terms of their clinical application for cancer therapy.
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Food Safety, Bohai University, Jinzhou, 121013, China.
authors.forename: Xue
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Ziping
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Zihan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Xingguang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Su
mesh_terms: D000903:Antibiotics, Antineoplastic / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D061848:Optical Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D011099:Polyglutamic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use; D045663:Quantum Dots / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence / Q000379:methods; D055672:Static Electricity
chemical_list: D000903:Antibiotics, Antineoplastic; D011099:Polyglutamic Acid; D004317:Doxorubicin