Iron Hydroxide/Oxide-Reduced Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite for Dual-Modality Photodynamic and Photothermal Therapy In Vitro and In Vivo

Abstract

Minimal invasive phototherapy utilising near-infrared (NIR) laser to generate local reactive oxygen species (ROS) and heat has few associated side effects and is a precise treatment in cancer therapy. However, high-efficiency and safe phototherapeutic tumour agents still need developing. The application of iron hydroxide/oxide immobilised on reduced graphene oxide (FeOxH–rGO) nanocomposites as a therapeutic agent in integration photodynamic cancer therapy (PDT) and photothermal cancer therapy (PTT) was discussed. Under 808 nm NIR irradiation, FeOxH–rGO offers a high ROS generation and light-to-heat conversion efficiency because of its strong NIR absorption. These phototherapeutic effects lead to irreversible damage in FeOxH–rGO-treated T47D cells. Using a tumour-bearing mouse model, NIR ablated the breast tumour effectively in the presence of FeOxH–rGO. The tumour treatment response was evaluated to be 100%. We integrated PDT and PTT into a single nanodevice to facilitate effective cancer therapy. Our FeOxH–rGO, which integrates the merits of FeOxH and rGO, displays an outstanding tumoricidal capacity, suggesting the utilization of this nanocomposites in future medical applications.

Keywords

• photodynamic therapy
• photothermal therapy
• reduced graphene oxide
• near-infrared laser
• iron hydroxide/oxide