The targeted delivery of a photosensitizer (PS) into specific cancer cells is an effective way to enhance the efficacy and minimize the side effects of photodynamic therapy. Herein, heptamannosylated β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) was used to mediate the formation of an adamantane (Ad)-functionalized BODIPY PS nanoparticle via strong β-CD/Ad complexation. The mannose-functionalized PS nanoparticles are selectively internalized by mannose-receptor-rich MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells via receptor-mediated endocytosis, facilitating singlet oxygen generation to trigger apoptosis in cancer cells upon red-light irradiation. These nanoparticles exhibit excellent targeted delivery of the PS, leading to cancer cell death after irradiation both in vitro and in vivo.Keywords: BODIPY; mannose-mediated targeting; photodynamic therapy; photosensitizer; supramolecular chemistry;

A cationic bola-amphiphile with salicylaldehyde azine moiety exhibited weak emission in water, whereas around 30-fold enhancement of emission was observed upon addition of γ-cyclodextrin due to the formation of [2]pseudorotaxane inclusion complex, which can specifically localize in mitochondria of living cells for fluorescent imaging.

In this work, we describe the one-pot synthesis of PEGylated mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) with uniform shape, tunable sizes, and narrow size distributions. The size of these nanoparticles can be controlled from 49 nm to 98 nm by simply varying the concentration of triethanolamine during the base-catalyzed sol–gel reaction. Particles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, thermogravimetric analysis, and nitrogen adsorption–desorption measurements. These PEGylated MSNs exhibited excellent long-term stability in biological media, which ensures their potential applications in drug delivery.A facile one-pot method for the synthesis of PEGylated monodisperse mesoporous silica nanoparticles is reported. The average size of these nanoparticles can be controlled from 49 nm to 98 nm by simply varying the concentration of triethanolamine during the base-catalyzed sol–gel reaction.