Magnetic chitosan/graphene oxide composite loaded with novel photosensitizer for enhanced photodynamic therapy

cell uptake experiments suggested that the MCGO nanomaterials can accelerate the penetration of HNPa drugs into the tumor cell nucleus and that the drug release behavior is pH-sensitive. The MTT assay results against human hepatoma cell lines HepG-2 clearly show that the MCGO-HNPa composite can effectively result in cell damage and apoptotic cell death under light, and that the nanocomposite can improve the PDT antitumor effect of PS agents with negligible dark toxicity. Meanwhile, the research on the photoreaction mechanism reveals that Type I and Type II photodynamic reactions can occur simultaneously in this PDT process, and their relative contributions depend on the type and dose of the photosensitizer. Type II has a greater effect on PDT than Type I, especially for a higher HNPa photosensitizer dose. All the results reveal the promising application of the presented novel strategy.