Rational design of block copolymer self-assemblies in photodynamic therapy

Maxime Demazeau (1, 2) , Laure Gibot (1, 2) , Anne-Françoise Mingotaud (1, 2) , Patricia Vicendo (1, 2) , Clément Roux (1, 2) , Barbara Lonetti (1, 2)

1 IMRCP - Interactions moléculaires et réactivité chimique et photochimique
2 IMRCP - IDeAS - IMRCP - Interfaces Dynamiques et Assemblages Stimulables

Photodynamic therapy is a technique already used in ophthalmology or oncology. It is based on the local production of reactive oxygen species through an energy transfer from an excited photosensitizer to oxygen present in the biological tissue. This review first presents an update, mainly covering the last five years, regarding the block copolymers used as nanovectors for the delivery of the photosensitizer. In particular, we describe the chemical nature and structure of the block copolymers showing a very large range of existing systems, spanning from natural polymers such as proteins or polysaccharides to synthetic ones such as polyesters or polyacrylates. A second part focuses on important parameters for their design and the improvement of their efficiency. Finally, particular attention has been paid to the question of nanocarrier internalization and interaction with membranes (both biomimetic and cellular), and the importance of intracellular targeting has been addressed.

Mots clés: intracellular targeting; micelles; photochemistry; photodynamic therapy (PDT); polymer; self-assembly

Domaines: Chimie; Polymères; Sciences du Vivant [q-bio]; Cancer

Maxime Demazeau, Laure Gibot, Anne-Françoise Mingotaud, Patricia Vicendo, Clément Roux, et al.. Rational design of block copolymer self-assemblies in photodynamic therapy. Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology, 2020, 11, pp.180-212. ⟨10.3762/bjnano.11.15⟩. ⟨hal-02565760⟩