Given their superior penetration depths, photosensitizers with longer absorption wavelengths present broader application prospects in photodynamic therapy (PDT). Herein, Ag2 S quantum dots were discovered, for the first time, to be capable of killing tumor cells through the photodynamic route by near-infrared light irradiation, which means relatively less excitation of the probe compared with traditional photosensitizers absorbing short wavelengths. On modification with polydopamine (PDA), PDA-Ag2 S was obtained, which showed outstanding capacity for inducing reactive oxygen species (increased by 1.69 times). With the addition of PDA, Ag2 S had more opportunities to react with surrounding O2 , which was demonstrated by typical triplet electron spin resonance (ESR) analysis. Furthermore, the PDT effects of Ag2 S and PDA-Ag2 S achieved at longer wavelengths were almost identical to the effects produced at 660 nm, which was proved by studies in vitro. PDA-Ag2 S showed distinctly better therapeutic effects than Ag2 S in experiments in vivo, which further validated the enhanced regulatory effect of PDA. Altogether, a new photosensitizer with longer absorption wavelength was developed by using the hitherto-unexplored photodynamic function of Ag2 S quantum dots, which extended and enhanced the regulatory effect originating from PDA.
Keywords: Ag2S; enhanced regulation; photodynamic behavior; photosensitizer; polydopamine.
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