Table 8.
Applications of UCNPs in smart drug/gene delivery.
| UCNPs | Agents | Loading method | Loading capacity | Stimulus type | Responder | Results | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NaYF4:Yb,Tm@NaLuF4 | Chlorambucil | Physical absorption | 49% | 980 nm light | Amino-coumarin derivative | In dark enzymatic physiological environment, chlorambucil released only 3% within 48 h; With 980 nm light irradiation, over 50% was released within 6 hours, peaking at 68% at 15 h; | 308 |
| LiYF4:Tm,Yb | DOX | Coordination | Approximately 1500 molecules of doxorubicin were loaded onto each NP | 980 nm light | Nitroveratryl | In dark, ultrasound and centrifugation for 60 min induced negligible DOX release; 980 nm light irradiation for 60 min triggered 40% DOX release; | 309 |
| NaYF4:Tm,Yb@NaYF4 | DOX | Physical absorption | 4.75% | 980 nm light | 2-Diazo-1,2-naphthoquinones | In dark, cumulative DOX release remained below 6%; With 980 nm light at 1.0 W/cm2 for 60 min, the release reached 30%, and at 1.5 W/cm2, it reached 40%; | 310 |
| NaYF4:Tm,Yb@NaYF4 | DOX | Physical absorption | - | 980 nm light | Spiropyran group | In dark, cumulative DOX release stayed below 5%; 980 nm light induced 80% drug release within 24 h; | 311 |
| NaYbF4:Tm@NaYbF4:Yb,Er | Roussin's black salt | Physical absorption | 10% | 980 nm light | Roussin's black salt | Burst NO release achieved | 312 |
| NaYbF4:Tm@NaYF4:Yb,Nd@NaYF4 | Roussin's black salt | Physical absorption | 11% | 808 nm light | Roussin's black salt | Burst NO release achieved | 313 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Tm | Plasmid DNA; siRNA; | Physical absorption | 0.7% | 980 nm light | 4,5-dimethoxy-2-nitroacetophenone | Spatiotemporal control of GFP expression achieved | 314 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Tm | siRNA | Physical absorption | 0.7% | 980 nm light | Photocaged linker | Spatiotemporal suppression of EGFP expression achieved | 315 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Tm@NaYF4 | Bcl-2 antisense oligonucleotides | Physical absorption | Approximately 38 DNA probes containing photocleavable groups were loaded on each NP | 980 nm light | Photocleavable linker | Bcl-2 mRNA expression in HeLa cells reduced by 50% | 316 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Er | DOX | Physical absorption | 14.2% | pH | mSiO2 | DOX release accelerated at pH 5.0, releasing >55% within 96 h; At pH 7.4, release was 35.2%; | 403 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Tm | DOX | Physical absorption | 60% | pH | PEG | At pH 5.8, DOX cumulative release 60% in 10 h; At pH 7.4, release <20%; | 380 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Tm@NaGdF4 | Plumbagin | Physical absorption | 22.63±1.28% | pH | PAA | At pH 7.4, plumbagin release was 4.32% in 24 h, with negligible release in 96 h; At pH 5.86 and 4.01, 24 h release was 36.37% and 85.72%, stabilizing to 39.79% and 86.17% at 96 h, respectively; | 320 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Er | DOX | Physical absorption | 58.7% | pH | UIO-66(NH2) | At pH 7.4, 30% and 40% of DOX were released in 12 and 24 h, respectively; At pH 5.5, 65% and 72% were released over the same times; | 222 |
| NaGaF4:Yb,Tm@NaGaF4: Yb,Er@NaGaF4 | DOX | Physical absorption | 7.9% | pH | Metal-phenolic networks | At pH 5.0, cumulative DOX release reached 51.1%; At pH 7.4, it was only 3.2%; | 321 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Tm | DOX | Physical absorption | 7.23% | 980 nm light; pH; | O-nitrobenzyl; Poly(methacrylic acid); | Under visible light at pH 7.4, cumulative DOX release was 8.35% after 5 h; Under 980 nm light irradiation and acidic conditions, it reached 59.5% in the same time; | 322 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Er@NaYF4 | DOX; Fe2+; | Physical absorption | 21.02% (DOX); 4.99% (Fe2+); | 980 nm light; pH; | Bis-(alkylthio) alkene; Bovine serum albumin; | At pH 7.4, 6.39% DOX released in 48 h; At pH 5.6, 35.76% released in same time; Fe2+ release rate significantly accelerated under 980 nm laser irradiation; | 323 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Er | Camptothecin | Self-assemble | 11.5% | 980 nm light; GSH; | Eosin Y; Disulfide bond; |
NIR light-activated photochemical internalization promoted vesicle escape to cytoplasm, enabling GSH-triggered camptothecin release | 326 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Er@NaGdF4 | DOX | Physical absorption | 8.7% | 980 nm light; GSH; | CuS; Disulfide bond; | At pH 5.0 with 10 mM GSH, DOX release reached 76% in 48 h under laser irradiation; Without laser, it was 71%; | 327 |
| NaGdF4:Yb,Er@NaGdF4:Nd,Yb | DOX | Physical absorption | 54.3% | 808 nm light; pH; GSH; | Polyoxometalate; Mn-doped silica; |
DOX release rate significantly increased under combined acidic, reductive conditions and NIR light irradiation | 328 |
| Y2O3:Yb,Er@Y2O3:Yb | DOX | Physical absorption | 6.89% | Temperature; pH; | Poly (N-isopropylacrylamide-co-methacrylic acid) | At pH 7.4, DOX release in 36 h was 12.5%; At pH 4.0, it reached 73.6%; At 25 °C, release was 8.1% in 36 h; At 50 °C, it increased to 51.4%; | 329 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Er | DOX | Physical absorption | - | Temperature; pH; | Poly (N-isopropylacrylamide-co-methacrylic acid) | At low temperature/high pH, DOX showed low release; At higher temperature/lower pH, release increased significantly; | 330 |
| NaYF4:Yb,Er@NaYF4 | DOX | Covalent bonding | 4.36±0.5% | Enzyme; pH; | Succinic acid-glycine-phenylalanine-leucine-glycine linker | DOX release significantly enhanced under combined enzymatic and acidic conditions | 331 |
siRNA: small interfering RNA; GFP: green fluorescent protein; EGFP: enhanced green fluorescent protein; mRNA: messenger RNA; PEG: polyethylene glycol; PAA: polyacrylic acid.