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September 10, 2025Open Access

NIR Responsive Polymeric Prodrug Micelles ZnPc@P(PEG-CMA-TKGEM) for Combating Gemcitabine Drug Delivery in Anticancer Chemotherapy

HZHeng ZhangShihezi University YYYiping YangEconomic Research Service SYShengchao YangShihezi University

Key Points

Cumulative drug release reaches 51% under NIR irradiation, demonstrating enhanced delivery effectiveness.
The cell viability of drug-loaded micelles is around 17%, significantly lower than the 80% in the control group.
Polymeric micelles designed with NIR responsiveness may enable targeted, controlled drug release in cancer therapies.
Self-assembled micelles show a hydrodynamic size of approximately 134 nm, optimizing drug delivery potential.

Abstract

The impact of encapsulating gemcitabine (GEM) into nanoparticles on its delivery remains underexplored, with the potential benefits of targeted drug delivery and stimuli-responsive release yet to be fully clarified. Herein, we designed a near-infrared (NIR) light-responsive polymeric nanoparticle, ZnPc@P(PEG-CMA-TKGEM), which integrates reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and cell imaging capabilities. The self-assembled polymeric micelles exhibit a hydrodynamic size of ~134 nm. Under NIR irradiation, the cumulative drug release rate reaches 51% within 48 h, which is three times higher than that of the non-irradiated control group. In cytotoxicity assays, the cell viability of the NIR-irradiated drug-loaded group is approximately 17%, while that of the NIR-irradiated blank group (without drug loading) remains above 80%. These results confirm that the nanocarriers successfully deliver GEM to target cells and achieve controlled drug release via NIR stimulation.

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