This Article reported the fabrication of a robust
theranostic cerasome encapsulating
indocyanine green (ICG) by incorporating 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-
phosphoethanolamine-N-[carboxy(
polyethylene glycol)2000]-1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic
acid monoamide (DSPE-PEG2000-DOTA), followed by chelating
radioisotope of (177)Lu. Its applications in optical and nuclear imaging of
tumor uptake and biodistribution, as well as photothermal killing of
cancer cells, were investigated. It was found that the obtained cerasome could act efficiently as fluorescence
contrast agent as well as nuclear imaging tracer. Encapsulating ICG into cerasome could protect ICG from degradation, aggregation, and fast elimination from body, resulting in remarkable improvement in near-infrared fluorescence imaging, photothermal stability, and in vivo pharmacokinetic profile. Both fluorescence and nuclear imaging showed that such agent could selectively accumulate in
tumor site after
intravenous injection of the cerasome agent into
Lewis lung carcinoma tumor bearing mice, resulting in efficient photothermal ablation of
tumor through a one-time NIR
laser irradiation at the best time window. The ability to track the uptake of cerasomes on a whole body basis could provide researchers with an excellent tool for developing cerasome-based drug delivery agents, especially the strategy of labeling cerasomes with
theranostic radionuclide (177)Lu, enabling the ability of the (177)Lu-labeled cerasomes for
radionuclide cancer therapy and even the combined
therapy.