A pH-responsive nanocontainer based on hydrazone-bearing hollow silica nanoparticles for targeted tumor therapy

A pH-responsive drug delivery system based on hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles (HMSNs) was fabricated for targeted tumor therapy by using hydrazone bonds as pH-sensitive linkers and hyaluronic acid (HA) molecules as both blocking and targeting agents. HMSNs were synthesized with good dispersion and dimensions of around 88 nm. Detailed material characterisation suggested that the drug delivery system was successfully constructed. It displayed a fast pH stimulus response for controlled drug release in vitro. Besides, systematic biological investigations revealed that the drug delivery system had good biocompatibility, which could effectively target tumor cells and deliver therapeutic cargo to induce tumor cell apoptosis in vitro and suppression of tumor growth in vivo. This study reports a promising drug delivery system for potential clinical application against tumor therapy.