Monitoring of Tumor Treatment using the Combination of Near-Infrared Laser Light and Carbon Nanotubes

摘要

Single-walled carbon nanotubes ( SWNTs ) have a high optical absorbance in the near-infrared ( NIR ) region. In thisrnspecial optical window, biological systems are known to be highly transparent. The optical properties of SWNTs provide an opportunity for selective photothermal therapy for cancer treatment. The application of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) in the field of biomedicine is becoming an entirely new and exciting topic. Here, SWNTs arernconjugated to integrin α_vβ_3 monoclonal antibody, which can bind specifically to the surface of the tumor markers. Inrnvitro study revealed that SWNT-PEG-mAb presented a high targeting efficiency on integrin α_vβ_3-positive cells. Thus,rnSWNTs, combined with suitable tumor markers, can be used as novel nanomaterials for selective photothermal therapy for cancer treatment.