Biomimetic Black Phosphorus Nanosheet-Based Drug Delivery System for Targeted Photothermal-Chemo Cancer Therapy

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2021 Aug 19:9:707208. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2021.707208. eCollection 2021.

Abstract

As a biodegradable material, black phosphorus (BP) has been considered as an efficient agent for cancer photothermal therapy. However, its systemic delivery faces several hurdles, including rapid degradation in blood circulation, quick clearance by the immune system, and low delivery sufficiency to the tumor site. Here, we developed a biomimetic nanoparticle platform for in vivo tumor-targeted delivery of BP nanosheets (BP NSs). Through a biomimetic strategy, BP NSs were utilized to coordinate with the active species of oxaliplatin (1,2-diaminocyclohexane) platinum (II) (DACHPt) complexions, and the nanoparticles were further camouflaged with mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-derived membranes. We showed that the incorporation of DACHPt not only decelerated the BP degradation but also enhanced the antitumor effect by combining the photothermal effect with chemotoxicity. Furthermore, MSC membrane coating increased the stability, dispersibility, and tumor-targeting properties of BP/DACHPt, significantly improving the antitumor efficacy. In short, our work not only provided a new strategy for in vivo tumor-targeted delivery of BP NSs but also obtained an enhanced antitumor effect by combining photothermal therapy with chemotherapy.

Keywords: biomimetic nanoparticles; black phosphorus; combined chemo-photothermal cancer therapy; drug-self-stabilization; mesenchymal stem cell membrane; targeted delivery.