Sertraline/ICG‐loaded liposome for dual‐modality imaging and effective chemo‐photothermal combination therapy against metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma

A large number of chemotherapeutic drugs, utilized in the treatment of advanced metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma, are typically prone to poor biocompatibility, lack of targeting specificity, and high toxicity, which mostly leads to unsatisfactory clinical outcomes. As a new drug delivery pathway, nanoliposomes have the advantages of simplifying metabolism, reducing drug side-effects, and providing specific targeting, which can potentially improve the therapeutic effect toward tumor therapy. In this study, a clinically integrated nanoliposome containing Sertraline Hydrochloride and indocyanine green (ICG), here named as Ser/ICG@Lip, was successfully synthesized by film-dispersion and hydration-sonication methods. The photoacoustic imaging and near-infrared fluorescence imaging capabilities of this novel nanoliposome were validated in vitro. The high encapsulation rate of Sertraline Hydrochloride and ICG ensured the safety and therapeutic efficacy of the particle. Moreover, our results suggest that chemo-photothermal combination therapy can be more effective than single photothermal or chemotherapy treatments against malignant tumor cells. This is the first study introducing Sertraline Hydrochloride as a liposome-encapsulated chemotherapeutic agent, containing photothermal capabilities, for the treatment of metastatic renal clear cell cancer cells. This novel drug system has potential to evolve into an alternate treatment method for metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma.