Microenvironment-responsive chemotherapeutic nanogels for enhancing tumor therapy via DNA damage and glutathione consumption

Although targeted therapy and immunotherapy are now shining in the treatment of some cancers, chemotherapy is still the cornerstone of drug treatment for many cancer patients. The emergence of chemotherapy prodrugs can improve the drug activity and reduce the side effects of chemotherapy. When used, the tumor microenvironment has characteristics different from normal tissues, and the existence of the microenvironment provided a more convenient way to design responsive nanodrugs. Herein, we designed a glutathione (GSH)-responsive prodrug nanogels for enhancing tumor chemotherapy. In the nanogels of HHNP, 10-hydroxycamptothecin (HCPT) played an essential role in killing cancer cells. HCPT was jointed with a cross-linker agent with disulfide bond and was further coated with polyethylene glycol, which not only prolonged the half-life of the drug, but also made HCPT accurate transport to the tumor fractions and achieved precise and controllable release. The proposal of HHNP effectively retained the biological activity of the drug, and introduced functions such as targeting, selective release and biodegradation, which greatly improved the medical efficiency of the drug and effectively reduced the toxic and side effects. This chemotherapeutic prodrug nanogel offers a new window for constructing efficient drug delivery platform.