Recent progress in the engineering of multifunctional colloidal nanoparticles for enhanced photodynamic therapy and bioimaging

Abstract This up-to-date review summarizes the design and current fabrication strategies that have been employed in the area of mono- and multifunctional colloidal nanoparticles – nanocarriers well suited for photodynamic therapy (PDT) and diagnostic purposes. Rationally engineered photosensitizer (PS)-loaded nanoparticles may be achieved via either noncovalent ( i.e. , self-aggregation, interfacial deposition, interfacial polymerization, or core-shell entrapment along with physical adsorption) or covalent (chemical immobilization or conjugation) processes. These PS loading approaches should provide chemical and physical stability to PS payloads. Their hydrophilic surfaces, capable of appreciable surface interactions with biological systems, can be further modified using functional groups (stealth effect) to achieve prolonged circulation in the body after administration and/or grafted by targeting agents (such as ligands, which bind to specific receptors uniquely expressed on the cell surface) or stimuli ( e.g. , pH, temperature, and light)-responsive moieties to improve their action and targeting efficiency. These attempts may in principle permit efficacious PDT, combination therapies, molecular diagnosis, and − in the case of nanotheranostics − simultaneous monitoring and treatment. Nanophotosensitizers (nano-PSs) should possess appropriate morphologies, sizes, unimodal distributions and surface processes to be successfully delivered to the place of action after systemic administration and should be accumulated in certain tumors by passive and/or active targeting. Additionally, physically facilitating drug delivery systems emerge as a promising approach to enhancing drug delivery, especially for the non-invasive treatment of deep-seated malignant tissues. Recent advances in nano-PSs are scrutinized, with an emphasis on design principles, via the promising use of colloid chemistry and nanotechnology.