Lutein-Based pH and Photo Dual-Responsive Novel Liposomes Coated with Ce6 and PTX for Tumor Therapy

Liposomes are considered the best nanocarrier for delivering cancer drugs such as chlorin e6 (Ce6) and paclitaxel (PTX). However, the poor stability and non-selectivity release of liposomes may severely limit their further applications. In this study, based on the characteristics of lutein (L) photo-response and orthoester (OE) acid-response, stable and dual-responsive liposomes (Dr-lips) have been prepared. The Dr-lips exhibited a spherical shape with a uniform size of approximately 58.27 nm. Moreover, they displayed a zeta potential ranging from −45.45 to −28.25 mV and showed excellent storage stability, indicating stable colloidal properties. Additionally, they achieved high drug encapsulation rates, with 92.27% for PTX and 90.34% for Ce6, respectively. Meanwhile, under near-infrared (NIR) light at 660 nm, Ce6 plays a key role in accelerating the photodegradation rate of lutein and PEG-OE-L while also enhancing tissue penetration ability. Additionally, Dr-lips loaded with Ce6 and PTX not only displayed excellent pH and photo dual-responsiveness for targeted delivering and releasing but also showed remarkable reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation capacity and impressive anti-tumor activity in vitro. Therefore, it provides a novel strategy for optimizing stability and enhancing their targeted drug delivery of liposome.