Preparation and photothermal therapy of gold nanorods modified by Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC polysaccharide

In recent years, the application of the nanoparticles formed by coupling the metal nanomaterials of photothermal therapy with polysaccharides as the modified carrier in the targeted treatment of liver cancer has attracted extensive attention. In the present work, an undescribed homogeneous polysaccharide BCP50–2 was obtained from Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC. The structural analysis displayed that BCP50–2 contained galactose and a small amount of arabinose, and was mainly composed of six monosaccharide residues: →3,5)-α-l-Araf-(1→, →4)-β-d-Galp-(1→, →4,6)-β-d-Galp-(1→, →3)-α-l-Galp-(1→, terminal α-l-Araf, and terminal β-d-Galp. To enhance the antitumor activity of BCP50–2, BCP50–2-AuNRs were prepared by coupling BCP50–2 with gold nanorods for the treatment of liver cancer. BCP50–2-AuNRs were rod-shaped with a long diameter of 26.8 nm and had good photothermal conversion effects. Under near-infrared light irradiation, BCP50–2-AuNRs possessed photothermal effects and suppressed the growth of HepG2, A549, and MCF-7 cells. In addition, BCP50–2-AuNRs inhibited the development of liver cancer by inducing cell apoptosis, cell cycle arrest in G2/M phases, and inhibiting cell migration. Moreover, BCP50–2-AuNRs inhibited tumor proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis in zebrafish. In summary, BCP50–2-AuNRs may be potentially useful for cancer treatment.