Chiral graphene-based supramolecular hydrogels toward tumor therapy

Abstract

Drugs with a chiral property are playing very important roles in the precise treatment of diseases (especially antitumor drugs); however, the enantioselective delivery of chiral anticancer drugs is still a challenge. Herein, a chiral hydrogel system is constructed by the co-assembly of the D-phenylalanine derivative gelator (DPFEG) with graphene oxide (GO). The chiral property can be regulated by near-infrared light irradiation, which makes it an ideal material for the on-demand control of chiral anticancer drug (oxaliplatin) release. In the absence of infrared light, the drug molecules can hardly leak out of the system for up to seven hours and the drugs can be released upon near-infrared light irradiation. Meanwhile, the light-heat conversion characteristics of GO enable the material to be capable of photothermal therapy. Consequently, the DPFEG-GO material shows a good suppression effect on T47D breast cancer cells. This exquisitely designed supramolecular system provides a simple and effective method for the absorption and precise release of chiral drugs, which has potential for the combination of chemotherapy and photothermal-therapy in the treatment of cancer.