Efficient in vitro delivery of paclitaxel by a nanocellulose-coated dendritic mesoporous organosilica nanoparticle for enhanced chemodynamic cancer therapy

Dendritic mesoporous organosilica nanoparticles (DMONs) with larger pore volumes, accessible interior regions, and open-pore channels have shown great potential in drug delivery for cancer treatment. However, the mesoporous structure of DMONs often leads to drug leakage, which ultimately results in premature drug release. Herein, cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) and polydopamine (PDA) coated DMONs were prepared to develop biocompatible and pH-responsive nanocarriers for effective paclitaxel (PTX) delivery (PTX@DMONs-PDA/CNC). CNC encapsulation was employed to prevent drug leakage while ensuring efficient drug release from nanocarriers at the tumor site. PDA was embedded as an external coating, a biocompatible molecule that enhances cellular uptake by increasing cell adhesion, as well as achieving the stimuli-response release of drugs. The nanocarriers exhibit excellent cellular uptake and acid-response release properties, the accumulated drug release reached up to 80.59% in 85 h at pH 5.5. Furthermore, the apoptosis effect of PTX@DMONs-PDA/CNC presents 14-fold higher than the control group. The CNC-coated drug delivery system provides a promising solution for the efficient and controlled release of drugs in chemodynamic cancer therapy.