A thermo-sensitive peptide hydrogel loaded with paclitaxel and antimony nanosheets for synergistic photothermal-chemotherapeutic treatment of breast cancer.

Introduction: Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Paclitaxel (PTX), a potent chemotherapeutic agent, is widely used in cancer treatment but suffers from poor aqueous solubility and systemic toxicity. Methods: In this study, we developed a thermo-sensitive peptide, TSP-5, which forms a stable hydrogel at 37 °C and dissociates upon heating to 45 °C to facilitate drug release. The hydrogel was co-loaded with PTX and photothermal agent antimony nanosheets (AM) for targeted delivery to tumor sites. Under near-infrared (NIR) laser irradiation, AM rapidly elevated the local temperature due to its high photothermal conversion efficiency, triggering hydrogel dissolution and subsequent PTX release. Simultaneously, AM-mediated photothermal therapy (PTT) contributed to tumor cell ablation. Results: Both in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrated that the TSP-5 hydrogel significantly enhanced PTX solubility, reduced systemic toxicity, and improved anti-tumor efficacy. Discussion: The findings highlight its potential as a promising platform for localized drug delivery.