Mechanism of Cytotoxic Action of Gold Nanorods Photothermal Therapy for A549 Cell.

Photothermal therapy has developed into an important field of tumor treatment research, and numerous studies have focused on the preparation of photothermal therapeutic agents, tumor targeting, diagnosis, and treatment integration. However, there are few studies on the mechanism of photothermal therapy acting on cancer cells. Here we investigated the metabolomics of lung cancer cell A549 during gold nanorod (GNR) photothermal treatment by high-resolution LC/MS, and several differential metabolites and corresponding metabolic pathways during photothermal therapy were found. The main differential metabolites contained 18-hydroxyoleate, beta-alanopine and cis-9,10-epoxystearic acid, and phosphorylcholine. Pathway analysis also showed metabolic changes involving cutin, suberine, and wax biosynthesis, pyruvate and glutamic acid synthesis, and choline metabolism. Analysis also showed that the photothermal process of GNRs may induce cytotoxicity by affecting pyruvate and glutamate synthesis, normal choline metabolism, and ultimately apoptosis.