Photothermal Response of Polyhydroxy Fullerenes

Photothermal therapy, utilizing photonic nanoparticles, has gained substantial interest as an alternative to systemic cancer treatments. Several different photothermal nanoparticles have been designed and characterized for their photothermal efficiency. However, a standardized experimental methodology to determine the photothermal efficiency is lacking leading to differences in the reported values for the same nanoparticles. Here, we have determined the role of different experimental parameters on the estimation of photothermal efficiency. Importantly, we have demonstrated the role of laser irradiation time and nanoparticle concentration as the two critical factors that can lead to errors in the estimation of photothermal efficiency. Based on the optimized parameters, we determined the photothermal conversion efficiency of polyhydroxy fullerenes to be 69%. Further, the photothermal response of polyhydroxy fullerenes was found to be stable with repeated laser irradiation and no changes in the molecular structure were observed. Given its high photothermal efficiency and superior stability, polyhydroxy fullerenes are an ideal candidate for photothermal therapy.