Ultra-homogeneous Cu2−xSe nanoparticles as near-infrared II plasmonic phototheranstics for photothermal/chemodynamic synergistic therapy of liver cancer

Laser mediated photothermal/chemodynamic co-therapy is widely applied for anti-cancer treatment due to its good therapeutic effect. However, the laser wavelength for effectively targeting deep tumor tissues can decide whether or not it is a key premise of irradiation treatment. In this study, a super-homogenous and highly dispersive spherical nanoparticle Cu2-XSe was prepared, which displayed a strong surface plasmon resonance (SPR) peak in the near-infrared region (NIR)-II and high Fenton catalytic efficiency. The results of in vitro experiments showed that Cu2-XSe nanoparticles exhibited high photothermal conversion efficiency under the excitation of NIR-II laser irradiation, which significantly improved its ability to produce ·OH. In a tumor-bearing mouse model, the combination of Cu2-XSe and photothermal/chemodynamic co-therapy guided by the real-time photoacoustic imaging in the NIR-II could effectively inhibit tumor growth and exhibit good in vivo/in vitro biocompatibility. In summary, this Cu2-XSe nanoparticle-based NIR-II laser-mediated photothermal/chemodynamic co-therapy strategy is expected to provide a new option for the diagnosis and treatment of liver cancer.