Construction of a chromium doped zinc gallate composite nano drug loading platform for enhancing anti-tumor efficacy through the combination of chemotherapy and photothermal therapy

In recent years, nanoparticles have become key carriers for cancer diagnosis and therapy. In this study, chromium-doped zinc gallium oxide nanomaterials (ZnGa2O4:Cr3+, ZGC) with uniform morphology were synthesized via a one-step hydrothermal method. A nano drug delivery platform (mZGC/DOX/ICG; mZGC: ZnGa2O4:Cr3+@ SiO2; DOX: Doxorubicin, ICG: Indocyanine Green) was successfully constructed based on ZGC, using Stöber method and electrostatic layer-by-layer self-assembly to enhance anti-tumor effect. The drug loading capacities (DLC%) for DOX and ICG were (54.11±0.21)% and (45.9±0.68)%, and the encapsulation efficiencies (EE%) were (56.18±0.77)% and (94.01±0.13)%, respectively. More notably, the release behavior of DOX from mZGC/DOX/ICG exhibited pH and temperature responsive characteristics. Meanwhile, the platform demonstrated good photothermal properties, drug release performance, blood compatibility, and anti-tumor effects superior to chemotherapy or photothermal therapy alone. It holds great potential for localized tumor therapy and is expected to be used in further anti-tumor research.