Ultrasmall Gold Nanorod Vesicles with Enhanced Tumor Accumulation and Fast Excretion from the Body for Cancer Therapy

A new kind of ultrasmall dissociable AuNR@PEG/PLGA vesicles (≈60 nm) (AuNR = gold nanorod; PEG = poly(ethylene glycol); PLGA = poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)) assembled from small AuNRs (dimension: ≈8 nm × 2 nm) is reported. They exhibit several striking features: prolonged circulation and prominent tumor accumulation; rapid excretion from the body as AuNR@PEG after therapy; enhanced photoacoustic and photo thermal properties; and high photothermal cancer therapy efficacy.