Bleach etches nanosilver: HOCl-responsive drug delivery system to target leukemic cells

In addition to their well-known antibacterial property, silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) have also been highlighted as anti-leukemic agents; however, the underlying mechanism responsible for inhibiting the growth of hematopoietic cancer cells is so far poorly understood. In previous reports, Ag NP-induced oxidative stress was implicated for therapeutic efficacy but the excessive production of ROS in several hematopoietic malignant cells, which can potentially induce the dissolution of Ag NPs, was not taken into consideration. In this study we proposed Ag NP dissolution, in response to increased oxidative stress in leukemic cells, as the most probable mechanism for their anticancer activity. Hypochlorous acid-mediated dissolution of therapeutically active and ultrasmall (