Fluorescence and drug loading properties of ZnSe:Mn/ZnS-Paclitaxel/SiO2 nanocapsules templated by F127 micelles

Hydrophobic ZnSe:Mn/ZnS core-shell fluorescence quantum dots (QDs) and anticancer drug paclitaxel (PTX) have been co-loaded into folate conjugated hybrid silica nanocapsules via F127 micelles based soft-template method in a mild aqueous environment at room temperature. The encapsulation of QDs shows a F127: QDs mass ratio dependent behavior, which impact much on the morphology and optical properties of composite nanocapsules. These as prepared composite nanocapsules also exhibit good photoluminescence stability under the temperature ranges from 19 °C to 49 °C. In addition, the aqueous solubility of PTX (0.1 μg/mL) can be efficiently enhanced about 630 times to 62.99 μg/mL, and the loaded PTX could be released during 12 h sustainably. These tunable fluorescence, enhanced drug loading efficiency and sustained release behavior manifest that the hybrid nanocapsule is a promising theranostic nanoplatform for future combined fluorescence imaging and chemotherapy.