A Curcumin-Based MOF Embedded Ag NPs and Modified with Polydopamine for Dual-Drug Delivery and Dual Biological Window Responsive Synergetic Cancer Therapy

A dual-drug delivery, pH-responsive composite nanoplatform (MAPD NPs) that can respond to two biological windows is developed to improve the efficacy of synergetic chemotherapic/photothermal/chemodynamic therapy (CDT) against tumors. This nanoplatform is surface-modified polydopamine (PDA) with excellent biocompatibility as the shell and Ag NPs as the catalyst for CDT. The curcumin (Cur) acts as an organic ligand to be encapsulated in metal−biomolecule frameworks (Bio-MOFs) by self-assembly, and Bio-MOF acts as a delivery carrier to deliver of DOX•HCl and then releases the Cur when it degrades in vivo. Moreover, Bio-MOF can be taken up by cells faster and accelerate cell death compared to free Cur. PDA modification enables MAP (PDA@MOF-Ag) to have photothermal properties under 808 and 1064 nm light irradiation, which not only improves the biocompatibility of MAP but also makes it produce high heat and abundant ·OH. The photothermal performance of MAP is stable after irradiation at 808 or 1064 nm, and the photothermal conversion efficiency reaches 63.57% and 26.25%. The survival rate of HeLa cells co-incubation with MAPD NPs after irradiation at 808 and 1064 nm decreases to 19.52 ± 0.69% and 30.48 ± 0.49%, respectively, providing a feasible scheme for the realization of deep tumor killing.