Abstract
Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNPs) of a small diameter were loaded with the anticancer drug temozolomide (TMZ), coated with polydopamine (PDA), and conjugated with Asn-Gly-Arg (NGR) for use in the treatment of glioma. The accumulation of NGR-MSNPs in C6 cells was shown to be higher than that of unmodified MSNPs. Anticancer drugs can cause autophagy in tumor cells, whereas autophagy inhibitors can block this reaction and enhance the therapeutic effect of the drugs. In this study, we demonstrated that MSNP-TMZ-PDA-NGR had stronger autophagy- and apoptosis-inducing effects in C6 cells than TMZ alone, and its anticancer effect was further enhanced when combined with autophagy inhibition. These results demonstrate that the combination of targeting vehicles and autophagy inhibitors may have research value in the treatment of gliomas.