Rational Design of Polymethine Dyes with NIR-II Emission and High Photothermal Conversion Efficiency for Multimodal-Imaging-Guided Photo-Immunotherapy

Water-soluble AIE photosensitizer in short-wave infrared region for albumin-enhanced and self-reporting phototheranostics

Organic photosensitizers (PSs) play important roles in phototheranostics, and contribute to the fast development of precision medicine. However, water-soluble and highly emissive organic PSs, especially those emitting in the short-wave infrared region (SWIR), are still challenging. Also, it's difficult to prepare self-reporting PSs for visualizing the treatment via stimulated emission depletion (STED) nanoscopy. Thus, in this work, a water-soluble molecule of DTPAP-TBZ-I with aggregation-induced emission features is designed for the self-reporting photodynamic therapy (PDT) in an ultra-high resolution. In contrast to single molecule, its complex (DTPAP-TBZ-I@BSA) shows much enhanced fluorescence properties and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in SWIR window. Their photoluminescence quantum yield is determined to be ∼20.6 % and the enhancement of ROS generation is ∼18-fold. During the PDT, immigration of the complex from cytoplasm to nucleus is also observed via STED nanoscopy with a resolution of 66.11 nm, which allows self-report in the PDT treatment. DTPAP-TBZ-I@BSA is finally utilized for the imaging-guided PDT in vivo with a tumor inhibition rate of 84 %. This is the first work in albumin-enhanced water-soluble organic PSs in SWIR window for self-reporting phototheranostics at ultra-high resolutions, providing an ideal solution for the next generation of photosensitizers for precise medicine.

Rational Design of NIR-II Fluorescence/Photoacoustic Nanosensor Tailored for Mechanisms of Diabetes-Related Breast Cancer

Breast cancer (BC) is the second most common cause of cancer induced death worldwide. Current statistics has disclosed that the diabetic BC patients have significantly worse survival rate compared with nondiabetic BC patients. However, the specific mechanism is still being explored. Herein, a novel NIR-II nanosensor DNPS for nitric oxide (NO) with fluorescence/photoacoustic (FL/PA) imaging capability is developed to explore the mechanism by which diabetes promoting breast cancer progression. In diabetic BC model, DNPS exhibits great advantages of low intrinsic background, high sensitivity, and deep tissue penetration and successfully confirmed the expression level of NO is higher than BC model, indicating that diabetes causes elevated nitric oxide levels in the tumor microenvironment. RNA-seq analysis results show that hyperglycemia caused by diabetes leads to weakened immune response and initiates the transcription and translation of the inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) gene to produce NO. Besides, the increased expression of carcinogens related to Nitric oxide synthase 2 (Nos2), such as Spp1, Mmp11, and Kitl, causes breast cancer to develop more rapidly. Here, NIR-II imaging probe is applied first to study diabetes-related breast cancer and certain reference value is provided for subsequent research on the mechanism of diabetes promoting the progression of breast cancer.

Molecular Engineering of Xanthene Dyes with 3D Multimodal-Imaging Ability to Guide Photothermal Therapy

Phototheranostics integrates light-based diagnostic techniques with therapeutic interventions, offering a non-invasive, precise, and swift approach for both disease detection and treatment. The efficacy of this approach hinges on the multimodal imaging potential and photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) of phototheranostic agents (PTAs). Despite the promise, crafting multifunctional phototheranostic organic small molecules brims with challenges. In this research, four innovative xanthene-derived PTAs are synthesized by fine-tuning the donor-π-acceptor (D-π-A) system to strike a balance between radiative and nonradiative decay. The inherent robust photostability and intense fluorescence of the traditional xanthene core are preserved, meanwhile the addition of highly electron-withdrawing groups boosts the non-radiative decay rate to enhance PCE and photoacoustic imaging capabilities. Remarkably, one of the PTAs, DMBA, demonstrates an exceptional absolute fluorescence quantum yield of 2.46% in PBS, and when encapsulated into nanoparticles, it achieves a high PCE of 79.5%. Consequently, DMBA nanoparticles (DMBA-NPs) are effectively employed in fluorescence, 3D photoacoustic, and photothermal imaging-guiding tumor photothermal therapy. This represents the first instance of a multimodal phototheranostic xanthene agent achieving synergistic fluorescence and photoacoustic imaging for diagnostic purposes. Furthermore, this work paves the way for leveraging xanthene fluorophores as versatile tools in the development of multifunctional reagents.

Achieving Ultrabright NIR-II Nanofluorophore for In Vivo Imaging by Inhibiting H-Aggregates Formation

Small molecules with an acceptor-donor-acceptor (A-D-A) structure, featuring a fused-ring core as the donor and two electron-withdrawing end groups as acceptor units, represent a potential option for NIR-II fluorophores, benefiting from their narrow bandgaps, superior light-harvesting capabilities, and exceptional photostabilities. However, their planar conformations predispose them to forming H-aggregates during self-assembly, leading to significantly reduced fluorescence quantum yield (QY) of the resulting nanofluorophores. Herein, we report a small molecule, PF8CN, with a terminal unit-A-D-A-terminal unit structure. The terminal units of 3,5-bis(octyloxy)phenyl group result in a twisted conformation for PF8CN, preventing face-to-face stacking and thereby inhibiting the formation of H-aggregates. Consequently, the NIR-II fluorescence QY of PF8CN NPs is 3.8 times that of the model nanofluorophore (F8CN NPs), which contains a substantial amount of H-aggregates. The NIR-II brightness of PF8CN NPs is 5.3- and 14.9-times that of F8CN NPs and ICG/FBS, respectively, at an equal molar concentration. Such ultrahigh NIR-II brightness of PF8CN NPs allows us to perform long-term and real-time NIR-II fluorescence imaging of cerebral and hindlimb vessels, as well as the thrombolytic process. This work provides an effective method for producing nanofluorophores with ultrahigh NIR-II brightness, positioning PF8CN NPs as a strong contender in the field of NIR-II nanofluorophores.

Time-Resolved Levodopa Cascade Polymerization Tuned by Bimetallic MOF Fluorescent Nanozyme and Boric Acid for Butyrylcholinesterase Activity Dual-Mode Assay

A ratiometric fluorescence-photothermal dual-mode assay method is constructed for the detection of butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) activity based on time-resolved levodopa (L-DOPA) cascade polymerization. First, a newly designed bimetallic metal-organic framework (MOF), Eu/Co-DPA (DPA: pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid), is screened out as a fluorescent nanozyme with high catalytic activity and superior luminescence properties. In the presence of boric acid (BA), L-DOPA forms BA-esterified L-DOPA, which is catalyzed by Eu/Co-DPA to form the oligomers with strong blue fluorescence. Meanwhile, the red fluorescence of Eu/Co-DPA is quenched by the oligomers, generating a sensitive turn-on/off ratiometric fluorescence response. As polymerization time increases, Eu/Co-DPA cleaves the borate ester bonds to expose the catechol structures of the oligomers, which facilitates the further oxidation and polymerization of the oligomers, promoting the formation of poly(L-DOPA) nanoparticles with a high photothermal conversion efficiency (30.33%). Then, by using thiocholine (butyrylthiocholine enzymolysis product) to inhibit the catalytic activity of Eu/Co-DPA, BChE activity is detected through the change in fluorescence and photothermal dual signals. Both assay modes have low detection limits (0.021 and 0.024 U L-1) and high accuracy (93.3-105.3% recovery). The detection results of real human serum indicate that both assay modes show 100.0% agreement with the standard method. To our knowledge, this work first combines bimetallic MOFs and a BA regulator to tune the structure of L-DOPA polymers, providing a pathbreaking paradigm for preparing catecholamine-based fluorescence-photothermal organic polymers.

Nanoprobe Based on Novel NIR-II Quinolinium Cyanine for Multimodal Imaging

NIR-II imaging has the advantages of high sensitivity, spatiotemporal resolution, and high penetration depth, thereby serving as a potential alternative to conventional imaging methods. Herein, a novel NIR-II dye IR-1010 (λex/λem = 1010/1058 nm) is reported with high quantum yield (3.08%) and good stability, by incorporating p-methoxyphenyl groups into a quinolinium cyanine dye. Then a multifunctional nanoprobe, termed IUFP NPs, is developed by the incorporation of upconversion (UC) nanoparticles (NPs), perfluoro-15-crown-5-ether (PFCE), and IR-1010, to display the novel performance of multimodal imaging. Under the single-wavelength excitation (980 nm), IUFP NPs simultaneously emit the NIR-II fluorescence of IR-1010 and visible UC luminescence of UCNPs, and thus realize the UC imaging for cells, and NIR-II fluorescence/photoacoustic/19F magnetic resonance imaging for blood vessels, lymph nodes and tumor in mice. This work affords a novel approach to NIR-II dyes and a general strategy for the design of multimodal imaging probes.

Highly Stable Near-Infrared II Luminescent Diradicaloids for Cancer Phototheranostics

Near-infrared II (NIR-II) phototheranostic agents have become prominent agents for the early diagnosis and precise treatment of cancer. Organic open-shell diradicaloids with distinct structure and narrow band gap are promising candidates for phototherapeutic agents due to their strong spin-coupling effect and NIR light-harvesting capacity. However, achieving stable and efficient NIR-II luminescent diradicaloids is crucial yet rather challenging considering their high chemical reactivity and self-absorption. Herein, two highly stable NIR-II luminescent diradicaloids, 2PhNVDPP and PhNVDPP, were successfully fabricated by employing an acceptor planarization/π-conjugation extension and donor rotation strategy. After encapsulation into water-dispersible nanoparticles (NPs), 2PhNVDPP NPs exhibit NIR-II luminescence, high PCE of 53%, and improved photo/heat stability. In vivo experiments with 2PhNVDPP NPs demonstrated the clear visualization of blood vessels and tumors, as well as the successful NIR-II imaging-guided photothermal ablation of tumors. This study not only develops a pioneering stable diradicaloid phototherapeutic agent with NIR-II luminescence but also provides a unique perspective for the effectiveness of multimodal anticancer therapy.

De novo strategy of organic semiconducting polymer brushes for NIR-II light-triggered carbon monoxide release to boost deep-tissue cancer phototheranostics

The integration of photoacoustic imaging (PAI) and photothermal therapy (PTT) within the second near-infrared (NIR-II) window, offering a combination of high-resolution imaging and precise non-invasive thermal ablation, presents an attractive opportunity for cancer treatment. Despite the significant promise, the development of this noninvasive phototheranostic nanomedicines encounters challenges that stem from tumor thermotolerance and limited therapeutic efficacy. In this contribution, we designed an amphiphilic semiconducting polymer brush (SPB) featuring a thermosensitive carbon monoxide (CO) donor (TDF-CO) for NIR-II PAI-assisted gas-augmented deep-tissue tumor PTT. TDF-CO nanoparticles (NPs) exhibited a powerful photothermal conversion efficiency (43.1%) and the capacity to trigger CO release after NIR-II photoirradiation. Notably, the liberated CO not only acts on mitochondria, leading to mitochondrial dysfunction and promoting cellular apoptosis but also hinders the overexpression of heat shock proteins (HSPs), enhancing the tumor's thermosensitivity to PTT. This dual action accelerates cellular thermal ablation, achieving a gas-augmented synergistic therapeutic effect in cancer treatment. Intravenous administration of TDF-CO NPs in 4T1 tumor-bearing mice demonstrated bright PAI signals and remarkable tumor ablation under 1064 nm laser irradiation, underscoring the potential of CO-mediated photothermal/gas synergistic therapy. We envision this tailor-made multifunctional NIR-II light-triggered SPB provides a feasible approach to amplify the performance of PTT for advancing future cancer phototheranostics.

De novo design of type-l photosensitizer agents based on structure-inherent low triplet energy for hypoxia photodynamic therapy

Photodynamic therapy (PDT), owing to its low invasiveness, high efficiency, fewer side effects, spatiotemporal controllability and good selectivity, has attracted increasing attention for its tremendous potential in revolutionizing conventional strategies of tumor treatment. However, hypoxia is a common feature of most malignancies and has become the Achilles' heel of PDT. Currently, Type II photosensitizers (PSs) have inadequate efficacy for PDT due to the inherent oxygen consumption of the anoxic tumor microenvironment. Moreover, due to the absence of a general molecular design strategy and the limitations imposed by the energy gap law, Type-I PSs are less reported. Therefore, the development of Type-I PSs with hypoxia resistant capabilities is urgently required. Herein, in this study, we have obtained pure Type-I materials for the first time by employing a strategy that decreases the triplet energy levels of the π-conjunction bridge. A sufficient donor-acceptor interaction reduces the lowest triplet energy level and aids in the transfer of excitons from singlet to triplet levels. With this strategy, dibenzofulvene derivatives (FEs) displayed purely Type-I ROS generation. Among them, FE-TMI exhibits superior Type-I reactive oxygen species-generation performance, showcasing the great potential of PDT in treating tumor cells under hypoxic conditions and several types of solid tumors in mouse in vivo experiments. This work provides a practical solution for the future design of Type-I PDT materials and is aimed at enhancing PDT efficiency.

Side Chain Phenyl Isomerization-Induced Spatial Conjugation for Achieving Efficient Near-Infrared II Phototheranostic Agents

The contradiction of near-infrared II (NIR-II) emission and photothermal effects limits the development of phototheranostic agents (PTAs) in many emerging cutting-edge applications. Organic aggregates present a promising opportunity for the balance of competitive relaxation processes through the manipulation of molecular structure and packing. Herein, side chain phenyl isomerization-induced spatial conjugation was proposed for constructing A-D-A type NIR-II PTAs with simultaneous enhancement of fluorescence brightness and photothermal properties. Three pairs of mutually isomeric fluorophores, whose phenyls respectively located at the outside (o-series) and inside (i-series) of the side chain, were designed and synthesized. The positional isomerization of the phenyl endows the o-series crystals with strong spatial conjugation between the phenyl group on the side chain and the backbone, as well as interlocked planar network, which is different to that observed in the i-series. Thus, all o-series nanoparticles (NPs) exhibit red-shifted absorption, enhanced NIR-II emission, and superior photothermal properties than their i-series counterparts. A prominent member of the o-series, o-ITNP NPs, demonstrated efficacy in facilitating NIR-II angiography, tumor localization, and NIR-II imaging-guided tumor photothermal therapy. The success of this side chain phenyl isomerization strategy paves the way for precise control of the aggregation behavior and for further development of efficient NIR-II PTAs.

Progression in Near-Infrared Fluorescence Imaging Technology for Lung Cancer Management

Lung cancer is a major threat to human health and a leading cause of death. Accurate localization of tumors in vivo is crucial for subsequent treatment. In recent years, fluorescent imaging technology has become a focal point in tumor diagnosis and treatment due to its high sensitivity, strong selectivity, non-invasiveness, and multifunctionality. Molecular probes-based fluorescent imaging not only enables real-time in vivo imaging through fluorescence signals but also integrates therapeutic functions, drug screening, and efficacy monitoring to facilitate comprehensive diagnosis and treatment. Among them, near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence imaging is particularly prominent due to its improved in vivo imaging effect. This trend toward multifunctionality is a significant aspect of the future advancement of fluorescent imaging technology. In the past years, great progress has been made in the field of NIR fluorescence imaging for lung cancer management, as well as the emergence of new problems and challenges. This paper generally summarizes the application of NIR fluorescence imaging technology in these areas in the past five years, including the design, detection principles, and clinical applications, with the aim of advancing more efficient NIR fluorescence imaging technologies to enhance the accuracy of tumor diagnosis and treatment.

Photo-Amplified Plasma Membrane Rupture by Membrane-Anchoring NIR-II Small Molecule Design for Improved Cancer Photoimmunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a promising cancer treatment method for eradicating tumor cells by enhancing the immune response. However, there are several major obstacles to conventional phototherapy-mediated immune responses, including inadequate immunogenicity and immunosuppressive environment. Here, we present a novel photoimmunotherapy modality-the development of membrane-anchoring small molecule inducing plasma membrane rupture (PMR) by NIR-II photo-stimulation, thus evoking cell necrotic death and enhancing antitumor immunotherapy. Our top-performing membrane-anchoring small molecule (CBT-3) exhibits temperature-tunable PMR efficiency, allowing rapid necrotic death in cancer cells at 50 μM dose by using exogenous NIR-II light-mediated mild photothermal effect (1064 nm, 0.6 W cm-2). Further evidence indicated that this gentle therapeutic approach activated inflammatory signaling pathways in cells, enhanced immunogenic cell death, and reshaped the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, ultimately promoting systemic antitumor immune responses in vivo. This study represents the first instance of utilizing NIR-II photo-amplified PMR effect based on membrane-anchoring small molecule, providing a novel avenue for advancing cancer photoimmunotherapy.

High-Performance NIR-II Fluorescent Type I/II Photosensitizer Enabling Augmented Mild Photothermal Therapy of Tumors by Disrupting Heat Shock Proteins

NIR-II fluorescent photosensitizers as phototheranostic agents hold considerable promise in the application of mild photothermal therapy (MPTT) for tumors, as the reactive oxygen species generated during photodynamic therapy can effectively disrupt heat shock proteins. Nevertheless, the exclusive utilization of these photosensitizers to significantly augment the MPTT efficacy has rarely been substantiated, primarily due to their insufficient photodynamic performance. Herein, the utilization of high-performance NIR-II fluorescent type I/II photosensitizer (AS21:4) is presented as a simple but effective nanoplatform derived from molecule AS2 to enhance the MPTT efficacy of tumors without any additional therapeutic components. By taking advantage of heavy atom effect, AS21:4 as a type I/II photosensitizer demonstrates superior efficacy in producing 1O2 (1O2 quantum yield = 12.4%) and O2 •- among currently available NIR-II fluorescent photosensitizers with absorption exceeding 800 nm. In vitro and in vivo findings demonstrate that the 1O2 and O2 •- generated from AS21:4 induce a substantial reduction in the expression of HSP90, thereby improving the MPTT efficacy. The remarkable phototheranostic performance, substantial tumor accumulation, and prolonged tumor retention of AS21:4, establish it as a simple but superior phototheranostic agent for NIR-II fluorescence imaging-guided MPTT of tumors.

Neutral Cyanine: Ultra-Stable NIR-II Merocyanines for Highly Efficient Bioimaging and Tumor-Targeted Phototheranostics

Fluorescence imaging (FLI)-guided phototheranostics using emission from the second near-infrared (NIR-II) window show significant potential for cancer diagnosis and treatment. Clinical imaging-used polymethine ionic indocyanine green (ICG) dye is widely adopted for NIR fluorescence imaging-guided photothermal therapy (PTT) research due to its exceptional photophysical properties. However, ICG has limitations such as poor photostability, low photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE), short-wavelength emission peak, and liver-targeting issues, which restrict its wider use. In this study, two ionic ICG derivatives are transformed into neutral merocyanines (mCy) to achieve much-enhanced performance for NIR-II cancer phototheranostics. Initial designs of two ionic dyes show similar drawbacks as ICG in terms of poor photostability and low photothermal performance. One of the modified neutral molecules, mCy890, shows significantly improved stability, an emission peak over 1000 nm, and a high photothermal PCE of 51%, all considerably outperform ICG. In vivo studies demonstrate that nanoparticles of the mCy890 can effectively accumulate at the tumor sites for cancer photothermal therapy guided by NIR-II fluorescence imaging. This research provides valuable insights into the development of neutral merocyanines for enhanced cancer phototheranostics.

Cationic conjugated polymer coupled non-conjugated segments for dually enhanced NIR-II fluorescence and lower-temperature photothermal-gas therapy

The lack of a simple design strategy to obtain ideal conjugated polymers (CPs) with high absorbance and fluorescence (FL) in the near-infrared-II (NIR-II; 1000-1700 nm) region still hampers the success of NIR-II light-triggered phototheranostics. Herein, novel phototheranostic nanoparticles (PPN-NO NPs) were successfully prepared by coloading a cationic NIR-II CPs (PBC-co-PBF-NMe3) and a NO donor (S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine, SNAP) onto a 1:1 mixture of DSPE-PEG5000 and dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) for NIR-II FL and NIR-II photoacoustic (PA) imaging-guided low-temperature NIR-II photothermal therapy (PTT) and gas combination therapy for cancer treatment. A precise NIR-II FL dually enhanced design tactic was proposed herein by integrating flexible nonconjugated segments (C6) into the CPs backbone and incorporating quaternary ammonium salt cationic units into the CPs side chain, which considerably increased the radiative decay pathway, resulting in desirable NIR-II FL intensity and balanced NIR-II absorption and NIR PTT properties. The phototheranostic PPN-NO NPs exhibited distinguished NIR-II FL and PA imaging performance in tumor-bearing mice models. Furthermore, the low-temperature photothermal effect of PPN-NO NPs could initiate NO release upon 980 nm laser irradiation, efficiently suppressing tumor growth owing to the combination of low-temperature NIR-II PTT and NO gas therapy in vitro and in vivo.

An Intramolecular Rotor-Bridged Dimeric Cyanine Photothermal Transducer for Efficient Near-Infrared II Fluorescence Imaging-Guided Mitochondria-Targeted Phototherapy

Near-infrared (NIR) heptamethine cyanine (HCy) dyes are promising photothermal transducers for image-guided cancer treatment owing to their prominent photophysical properties and high photothermal conversion ability. However, HCy photothermal transducers usually have poor photostability due to degradation induced by the self-generated reactive oxygen species. Herein, a novel mitochondria-targeting dimeric HCy dye, named dimeric oBHCy, is rationally designed, exhibiting strong near-infrared II (NIR-II) fluorescence emission, high photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE), and excellent photostability. The large π-conjugation and drastic intramolecular motion of the diphenol rotor in the dimeric oBHCy enhance the nonradiative energy dissipation and suppress the intersystem crossing process, thereby achieving a high PCE (49.2%) and improved photostability. Impressively, dimeric oBHCy can precisely target mitochondria and induce mitochondrial damage upon NIR light irradiation. Under the guidance of in vivo NIR-II fluorescence imaging, efficient NIR light-activated photothermal therapy of 4T1 breast tumors is accomplished with a tumor inhibitory rate of 96% following a single injection of the dimeric oBHCy. This work offers an innovative strategy for designing cyanine photothermal transducers with integrated NIR-II fluorescence and photothermal properties for efficient cancer theranostics.

Ultrasound-Based Micro-/Nanosystems for Biomedical Applications

Due to the intrinsic non-invasive nature, cost-effectiveness, high safety, and real-time capabilities, besides diagnostic imaging, ultrasound as a typical mechanical wave has been extensively developed as a physical tool for versatile biomedical applications. Especially, the prosperity of nanotechnology and nanomedicine invigorates the landscape of ultrasound-based medicine. The unprecedented surge in research enthusiasm and dedicated efforts have led to a mass of multifunctional micro-/nanosystems being applied in ultrasound biomedicine, facilitating precise diagnosis, effective treatment, and personalized theranostics. The effective deployment of versatile ultrasound-based micro-/nanosystems in biomedical applications is rooted in a profound understanding of the relationship among composition, structure, property, bioactivity, application, and performance. In this comprehensive review, we elaborate on the general principles regarding the design, synthesis, functionalization, and optimization of ultrasound-based micro-/nanosystems for abundant biomedical applications. In particular, recent advancements in ultrasound-based micro-/nanosystems for diagnostic imaging are meticulously summarized. Furthermore, we systematically elucidate state-of-the-art studies concerning recent progress in ultrasound-based micro-/nanosystems for therapeutic applications targeting various pathological abnormalities including cancer, bacterial infection, brain diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and metabolic diseases. Finally, we conclude and provide an outlook on this research field with an in-depth discussion of the challenges faced and future developments for further extensive clinical translation and application.

Acceptor-donor-acceptor type organic photothermal agents with enhanced NIR absorption and photothermal conversion effect for cancer photothermal therapy

Numerous photothermal agents (PTAs) require high-intensity and long-duration laser excitation for photothermal therapy (PTT), resulting in light damage to healthy skin and tissue as well as limiting their biomedical applications. Integrating desirable near-infrared (NIR) absorption and high photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) into a single small-molecule PTA is an important prerequisite for realizing efficient PTT, but is a serious challenge. Herein, through molecular engineering strategy, an acceptor-donor-acceptor (A-D-A) type PTA (ADA3) was readily developed for 808 nm laser-driving photothermal imaging and PTT of tumor. Theoretical calculations and experiment results show molecular engineering strategy is significant in regulating the structure and energy gap of PTAs, so as to effectively induce a narrow band gap for NIR absorption and further optimize photothermal properties. ADA3 possesses molar extinction coefficient of 3.1 × 104 M-1 cm-1 at 808 nm, followed being assembled into nanoparticles, ADA3-NPs show high PCE of 80.3%. In vivo experiments indicate that ADA3-NPs have excellent antitumor capability under one-time, low-intensity and short-duration (808 nm, 330 mW/cm2, 3 min) laser irradiation. Therefore, this work definitely exemplifies the enormous potential of molecular engineering strategy and provides an effective method for developing small-molecule PTAs.

Development of Polymethine Dyes for NIR-II Fluorescence Imaging and Therapy

Fluorescence imaging in the second near-infrared window (NIR-II) is burgeoning because of its higher imaging fidelity in monitoring physiological and pathological processes than clinical visible/the second near-infrared window fluorescence imaging. Notably, the imaging fidelity is heavily dependent on fluorescence agents. So far, indocyanine green, one of the polymethine dyes, with good biocompatibility and renal clearance is the only dye approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but it shows relatively low NIR-II brightness. Importantly, tremendous efforts are devoted to synthesizing polymethine dyes for imaging preclinically and clinically. They have shown feasibility in the customization of structure and properties to fulfill various needs in imaging and therapy. Herein, a timely update on NIR-II polymethine dyes, with a special focus on molecular design strategies for fluorescent, photoacoustic, and multimodal imaging, is offered. Furthermore, the progress of polymethine dyes in sensing pathological biomarkers and even reporting drug release is illustrated. Moreover, the NIR-II fluorescence imaging-guided therapies with polymethine dyes are summarized regarding chemo-, photothermal, photodynamic, and multimodal approaches. In addition, artificial intelligence is pointed out for its potential to expedite dye development. This comprehensive review will inspire interest among a wide audience and offer a handbook for people with an interest in NIR-II polymethine dyes.

Self-Supplied Reactive Oxygen Species-Responsive Mitoxantrone Polyprodrug for Chemosensitization-Enhanced Chemotherapy under Moderate Hyperthermia

Currently, the secondary development and modification of clinical drugs has become one of the research priorities. Researchers have developed a variety of TME-responsive nanomedicine carriers to solve certain clinical problems. Unfortunately, endogenous stimuli such as reactive oxygen species (ROS), as an important prerequisite for effective therapeutic efficacy, are not enough to achieve the expected drug release process, therefore, it is difficult to achieve a continuous and efficient treatment process. Herein, a self-supply ROS-responsive cascade polyprodrug (PMTO) is designed. The encapsulation of the chemotherapy drug mitoxantrone (MTO) in a polymer backbone could effectively reduce systemic toxicity when transported in vivo. After PMTO is degraded by endogenous ROS of the TME, another part of the polyprodrug backbone becomes cinnamaldehyde (CA), which can further enhance intracellular ROS, thereby achieving a sustained drug release process. Meanwhile, due to the disruption of the intracellular redox environment, the efficacy of chemotherapy drugs is enhanced. Finally, the anticancer treatment efficacy is further enhanced due to the mild hyperthermia effect of PMTO. In conclusion, the designed PMTO demonstrates remarkable antitumor efficacy, effectively addressing the limitations associated with MTO.

Aggregation-enhanced photothermal therapy of organic dyes

Photothermal therapy (PTT) represents a groundbreaking approach to targeted disease treatment by harnessing the conversion of light into heat. The efficacy of PTT heavily relies on the capabilities of photothermal agents (PTAs). Among PTAs, those based on organic dyes exhibit notable characteristics such as adjustable light absorption wavelengths, high extinction coefficients, and high compatibility in biological systems. However, a challenge associated with organic dye-based PTAs lies in their efficiency in converting light into heat while maintaining stability. Manipulating dye aggregation is a key aspect in modulating non-radiative decay pathways, aiming to augment heat generation. This review delves into various strategies aimed at improving photothermal performance through constructing aggregation. These strategies including protecting dyes from photodegradation, inhibiting non-photothermal pathways, maintaining space within molecular aggregates, and introducing intermolecular photophysical processes. Overall, this review highlights the precision-driven assembly of organic dyes as a promising frontier in enhancing PTT-related applications. This article is categorized under: Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Emerging Technologies Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease Diagnostic Tools > In Vivo Nanodiagnostics and Imaging.

A thermoresponsive nanocomposite integrates NIR-II-absorbing small molecule with lonidamine for pyroptosis-promoted synergistic immunotherapy

Photothermal immunotherapy is regarded as the ideal cancer therapeutic modality to against malignant solid tumors; however, its therapeutic benefits are often modest and require improvement. In this study, a thermoresponsive nanoparticle (BTN@LND) composed of a photothermal agent (PTA) and pyroptosis inducer (lonidamine) were developed to enhance immunotherapy applications. Specifically, our "two-step" donor engineering strategy produced the strong NIR-II-absorbing organic small-molecule PTA (BTN) that exhibited high NIR-II photothermal performance (ε1064 = 1.51 × 104 M-1 cm-1, η = 75.8%), and this facilitates the diagnosis and treatment of deep tumor tissue. Moreover, the fabricated thermally responsive lipid nanoplatform based on BTN efficiently delivered lonidamine to the tumor site and achieved spatiotemporal release triggered by the NIR-II photothermal effect. In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that the NIR-II photothermal therapy (PTT)-mediated on-demand release of cargo effectively faciliated tumor cell pyroptosis, thereby intensifying the immunogenic cell death (ICD) process to promote antitumor immunotherapy. As a result, this intelligent component bearing photothermal and chemotherapy can maximally suppress the growth of tumors, thus providing a promising approach for pyroptosis/NIR-II PTT synergistic therapy against tumors.

Accessible Tetrathiafulvalene Moieties in a 3D Covalent Organic Framework for Enhanced Near-Infrared Photo-Thermal Conversion and Photo-Electrical Response

Redox-active tetrathiafulvalene (TTF)-based covalent organic frameworks (COFs) exhibit distinctive electrochemical and photoelectrical properties, but their prevalent two-dimensional (2D) structure with densely packed TTF moieties limits the accessibility of redox center and constrains their potential applications. To overcome this challenge, an 8-connected TTF linker (TTF-8CHO) is designed as a new building block for the construction of three-dimensional (3D) COFs. This approach led to the successful synthesis of a 3D COF with the bcu topology, designated as TTF-8CHO-COF. In comparison to its 2D counterpart employing a 4-connected TTF linker, the 3D COF design enhances access to redox sites, facilitating controlled oxidation by I2 or Au3+ to tune physical properties. When irradiated with a 0.7 W cm-2 808 nm laser, the oxidized 3D COF samples (I X - ${\mathrm{I}}_{\mathrm{X}}^{-}$ @TTF-8CHO-COF and Au NPs@TTF-8CHO-COF) demonstrated rapid temperature increases of 239.3 and 146.1 °C, respectively, which surpassed those of pristine 3D COF (65.6 °C) and the 2D COF counterpart (6.4 °C increment after I2 treatment). Furthermore, the oxidation of the 3D COF heightened its photoelectrical responsiveness under 808 nm laser irradiation. This augmentation in photothermal and photoelectrical response can be attributed to the higher concentration of TTF·+ radicals generated through the oxidation of well-exposed TTF moieties.

NIR-II Protein-Escaping Dyes Enable High-Contrast and Long-Term Prognosis Evaluation of Flap Transplantation

Real-time vascular positioning, postoperative flap monitoring, and vascular reconstruction assessment are of great importance in flap transplantation. Cyanine dyes offer the advantage of high resolution in the Near-infrared-II (NIR-II) imaging window. However, the nonspecific binding of many cyanine dyes to endogenous albumin leads to high organ accumulation and skin absorption, resulting in low-quality imaging and poor reproducibility of contrast during long-term (e.g., 7 days) postoperative monitoring. Here, a novel strategy is proposed that can be widely applied to prevent protein binding for NIR-I/II Cl-containing cyanine dyes. This strategy produces protein-escaping dyes, ensuring high fluorescence enhancement in the blood with rapid clearance and no residual fluorescence, allowing for short-term repeatable injections for vascular imaging. This strategy in the perioperative monitoring of pedicle perforator flap models in mice and rats is successfully applied. Furthermore, leveraging the universality of this strategy, multiple nonoverlapping protein-escaping probes that achieve dual-excitation (808 and 1064 nm) interference-free imaging of nerve-vessel and tumor-vessel simultaneously are designed and synthesized. These protein-escaping dyes enable long-term repeatable dual-color imaging of tumor localization, resection, and tumor-vessel reconstruction at the wound site.

Rotor-based image-guided therapy of glioblastoma

Glioblastoma (GBM), deep in the brain, is more challenging to diagnose and treat than other tumors. Such challenges have blocked the development of high-impact therapeutic approaches that combine reliable diagnosis with targeted therapy. Herein, effective cyanine dyes (IRLy) with the near-infrared two region (NIR-II) adsorption and aggregation-induced emission (AIE) have been developed via an "extended conjugation & molecular rotor" strategy for multimodal imaging and phototherapy of deep orthotopic GBM. IRLy was synthesized successfully through a rational molecular rotor modification with stronger penetration, higher signal-to-noise ratio, and a high photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) up to ∼60%, which can achieve efficient NIR-II photo-response. The multifunctional nanoparticles (Tf-IRLy NPs) were further fabricated to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) introducing transferrin (Tf) as a targeting ligand. Tf-IRLy NPs showed high biosafety and good tumor enrichment for GBM in vitro and in vivo, and thus enabled accurate, efficient, and less invasive NIR-II multimodal imaging and photothermal therapy. This versatile Tf-IRLy nanosystem can provide a reference for the efficient, precise and low-invasive multi-synergistic brain targeted photo-theranostics. In addition, the "extended conjugation & molecular rotor" strategy can be used to guide the design of other photothermal agents.

Novel small molecule-based organic nanoparticles for second near-infrared photothermal tumor ablation

Second near-infrared (NIR-II,1000 ∼ 1700 nm) therapeutic window presents an increased tissue penetration and elevated maximal permissible exposure in the application of photothermal therapy (PTT). However, the lack of NIR-II photothermal conversion agents (PCAs) limit their further development. In this work, we rationally designed and successfully developed three novel indolium-like heptamethine cyanine dyes (NFs) by installing N,N-diethylamino on the terminal ends of a conjugated polyene backbone and replacing the middle chlorine atom with o-mercapto benzoic acid and p-mercapto benzoic acid. Notably, NF2 with stronger rotating group encapsulated in organic nanoparticles (NF2 NPs) exhibited high photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE), which could come up to (61.3 %). Then we conducted serial experiments to further investigate PTT capability of NF2 NPs 4 T1 cell line and nude mice bearing 4 T1 tumor. As expected, the resulting NF2 NPs presented the excellent photothermal conversion ability and superb PTT effect both in vivo and in vitro. This study will inspire more work for future design and clinical applications of NIR-II therapeutic agents.

NIR-IIb fluorescence antiangiogenesis copper nano-reaper for enhanced synergistic cancer therapy

The formation of blood vessel system under a relatively higher Cu2+ ion level is an indispensable precondition for tumor proliferation and migration, which was assisted in forming the tumor immune microenvironment. Herein, a copper ions nano-reaper (LMDFP) is rationally designed not only for chelating copper ions in tumors, but also for combination with photothermal therapy (PTT) to improve antitumor efficiency. Under 808 nm laser irradiation, the fabricated nano-reaper converts light energy into thermal energy to kill tumor cells and promotes the release of D-penicillamine (DPA) in LMDFP. Photothermal properties of LMDFP can cause tumor ablation in situ, which further induces immunogenic cell death (ICD) to promote systematic antitumor immunity. The released DPA exerts an anti-angiogenesis effect on the tumor through chelating copper ions, and inhibits the expression of programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1), which synergizes with PTT to enhance antitumor immunity and inhibit tumor metastasis. Meanwhile, the nanoplatform can emit near-infrared-IIb (NIR-IIb) fluorescence under 980 nm excitation, which can be used to track the nano-reaper and determine the optimal time point for PTT. Thus, the fabricated nano-reaper shows powerful potential in inhibiting tumor growth and metastasis, and holds great promise for the application of copper nanochelator in precise tumor treatment.

Immunoadjuvant-Modified Rhodobacter sphaeroides Potentiate Cancer Photothermal Immunotherapy

Photothermal immunotherapy has become a promising strategy for tumor treatment. However, the intrinsic drawbacks like light instability, poor immunoadjuvant effect, and poor accumulation of conventional inorganic or organic photothermal agents limit their further applications. Based on the superior carrying capacity and active tumor targeting property of living bacteria, an immunoadjuvant-intensified and engineered tumor-targeting bacterium was constructed to achieve effective photothermal immunotherapy. Specifically, immunoadjuvant imiquimod (R837)-loaded thermosensitive liposomes (R837@TSL) were covalently decorated onto Rhodobacter sphaeroides (R.S) to obtain nanoimmunoadjuvant-armed bacteria (R.S-R837@TSL). The intrinsic photothermal property of R.S combined R837@TSL to achieve in situ near-infrared (NIR) laser-controlled release of R837. Meanwhile, tumor immunogenic cell death (ICD) caused by photothermal effect of R.S-R837@TSL, synergizes with released immunoadjuvants to promote maturation of dendritic cells (DCs), which enhance cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) infiltration for further tumor eradication. The photosynthetic bacteria armed with immunoadjuvant-loaded liposomes provide a strategy for immunoadjuvant-enhanced cancer photothermal immunotherapy.

J-Aggregation Strategy toward Potentiated NIR-II Fluorescence Bioimaging of Molecular Fluorophores

Molecular fluorophores emitting in the second near-infrared (NIR-II, 1000-1700 nm) window with strong optical harvesting and high quantum yields hold great potential for in vivo deep-tissue bioimaging and high-resolution biosensing. Recently, J-aggregates are harnessed to engineer long-wavelength NIR-II emitters and show unique superiority in tumor detection, vessel mapping, surgical navigation, and phototheranostics due to their bathochromic-shifted optical bands in the required slip-stacked arrangement aggregation state. However, despite the preliminary progress of NIR-II J-aggregates and theoretical study of structure-property relationships, further paradigms of NIR-II J-aggregates remain scarce due to the lack of study on aggregated fluorophores with slip-stacked fashion. In this effort, how to utilize the specific molecular structure to form slip-stacked packing motifs with J-type aggregated exciton coupling is emphatically elucidated. First, several molecular regulating strategies to achieve NIR-II J-aggregates containing intermolecular interactions and external conditions are positively summarized and deeply analyzed. Then, the recent reports on J-aggregates for NIR-II bioimaging and theranostics are systematically summarized to provide a clear reference and direction for promoting the development of NIR-II organic fluorophores. Eventually, the prospective efforts on ameliorating and promoting NIR-II J-aggregates to further clinical practices are outlined.

Dyads and Triads of Boron Difluoride Formazanate and Boron Difluoride Dipyrromethene Dyes

Dye-dye conjugates have attracted significant interest for their utility in applications such as bioimaging, theranostics, and light-harvesting. Many classes of organic dyes have been employed in this regard; however, building blocks don't typically extend beyond small chromophores. This can lead to minor changes to the optoelectronic properties of the original dye. The exploration of dye-dye structures is impeded by long synthetic routes, incompatible synthetic conditions, or a mismatch of the desired properties. Here, we present the first-of-their-kind dye-dye conjugates of boron difluoride complexes of formazanate and dipyrromethene ligands. These conjugates exhibit dual photoluminescence bands that reach the near-infrared spectral region and implicate anti-Kasha processes. Cyclic voltammetry experiments revealed the generation of polyanionic species that can reversibly tolerate the uptake of up to 6 electrons. Ultimately, we demonstrate that BF2 formazanates can serve as a synthetically accessible platform to build upon new classes of dye-dye conjugates.

Small-Molecule Phototheranostic Agent with Extended π-Conjugation for Efficient NIR-II Photoacoustic-Imaging-Guided Photothermal Therapy

Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) and photothermal therapy (PTT) conducted over the near-infrared-II (NIR-II) window offer the benefits of noninvasiveness and deep tissue penetration. This necessitates the development of highly effective therapeutic agents with NIR-II photoresponsivity. Currently, the predominant organic diagnostic agents used in NIR-II PAI-guided PTT are conjugated polymeric materials. However, they exhibit a low in vivo clearance rate and long-term biotoxicity, limiting their clinical translation. In this study, an organic small molecule (CY-1234) with NIR-II absorption and nanoencapsulation (CY-1234 nanoparticles (NPs)) for PAI-guided PTT is reported. Extended π-conjugation is achieved in the molecule by introducing donor-acceptor units at both ends of the molecule. Consequently, CY-1234 exhibits a maximum absorption peak at 1234 nm in tetrahydrofuran. Nanoaggregates of CY-1234 are synthesized via F-127 encapsulation. They exhibit an excellent photothermal conversion efficiency of 76.01% upon NIR-II light irradiation. After intravenous injection of CY-1234 NPs into tumor-bearing mice, strong PA signals and excellent tumor ablation are observed under 1064 nm laser irradiation. This preliminary study can pave the way for the development of small-molecule organic nanoformulations for future clinical applications.

pH-Responsive NIR-II phototheranostic agents for in situ tumor vascular monitoring and combined anti-vascular/photothermal therapy

Developing nanoplatforms integrating superior fluorescence imaging ability in second near-infrared (NIR-II) window and tumor microenvironment responsive multi-modal therapy holds great potential for real-time feedback of therapeutic efficacy and optimizing tumor inhibition. Herein, we developed a pH-sensitive pyrrolopyrrole aza-BODIPY-based amphiphilic molecule (PTG), which has a balanced NIR-II fluorescence brightness and photothermal effect. PTG is further co-assembled with a vascular disrupting agent (known as DMXAA) to prepare PTDG nanoparticles for combined anti-vascular/photothermal therapy and real-time monitoring of the tumor vascular disruption. Each PTG molecule has an active PT-3 core which is linked to two PEG chains via pH-sensitive ester bonds. The cleavage of ester bonds in the acidic tumor environment would tricker releases of DMXAA for anti-vascular therapy and further assemble PT-3 cores into micrometer particles for long term monitoring of the tumor progression. Furthermore, benefiting from the high brightness in the NIR-II region (119.61 M-1 cm-1) and long blood circulation time (t1/2 = 235.6 min) of PTDG nanoparticles, the tumor vascular disrupting process can be in situ visualized in real time during treatment. Overall, this study demonstrates a self-assembly strategy to build a pH-responsive NIR-II nanoplatform for real-time monitoring of tumor vascular disruption, long-term tracking tumor progression and combined anti-vascular/photothermal therapy.

Ultra-Bright Heptamethine Dye Clusters Based on a Self-Adaptive Co-Assembly Strategy for NIR-IIb Biomedical Imaging

Despite the wide range of applications of bright NIR-II polymethine scaffolds in biomedical imaging, their solvatochromism and aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) effects in aqueous solutions limit their inherent brightness using traditional encapsulation methods, and effective hydrophilization strategies are still scarce. Here, a new set of Flav dyes is synthesized and PEGylated, followed by manufacturing DSPE@FlavP2000 nanoparticles using a self-adaptive co-assembly strategy to overcome these limitations. FlavP2000 can autonomously adjust its conformation when co-assembled with DSPE-PEG2000 , resulting in high-efficiency luminescence (≈44.9% fluorescence of Flav in DMSO). DSPE@FlavP2000 enables NIR-IIb (>1500 nm) angiography with high signal-to-noise ratios. Notably, this co-assembly can occur in situ between FlavP2000 with proteins in the living body based on a novel mechanism of brightness activation induced by disassembly (BAD), achieving consistent brightness as DSPE@FlavP2000 in blood or serum. The self-adaptive co-assembly strategy can be enhanced by incorporating an IPA moiety, which dynamically binds to albumin to prolong the dye's blood circulation time. Thus, the "enhanced" BAD is successfully applied to long-term vascular imaging and sciatic nerve imaging. Both the self-adaptive co-assembly strategy and BAD phenomenon improve the selectivity and availability of the hydrophilization methods, paving the way for efficient biological applications of polymethine dyes.

Photo-Induced Electron Transfer-Triggered Structure Deformation Promoting Near-Infrared Photothermal Conversion for Tumor Therapy

Photothermal therapy (PTT) is a promising approach to cancer treatment. Heptamethine cyanine (Cy7) is an attractive photothermal reagent because of its large molar absorption coefficient, good biocompatibility, and absorption of near-infrared irradiation. However, the photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) of Cy7 is limited without ingenious excitation-state regulation. In this study, the photothermal conversion ability of Cy7 is efficiently enhanced based on photo-induced electron transfer (PET)-triggered structural deformation. Three Cy7 derivatives, whose Cl is replaced by carbazole, phenoxazine, and phenothiazine at the meso-position (CZ-Cy7, PXZ-Cy7, and PTZ-Cy7), are presented as examples to demonstrate the regulation of the energy release of the excited states. Because the phenothiazine moiety exhibits an obvious PET-induced structural deformation in the excited state, which quenches the fluorescence and inhibits intersystem crossing of S1 →T1 , PTZ-Cy7 exhibits a PCE as high as 77.5%. As a control, only PET occurs in PXZ-Cy7, with a PCE of 43.5%. Furthermore, the PCE of CZ-Cy7 is only 13.0% because there is no PET process. Interestingly, PTZ-Cy7 self-assembles into homogeneous nanoparticles exhibiting passive tumor-targeting properties. This study provides a new strategy for excited-state regulation for photoacoustic imaging-guided PTT with high efficiency.

THQ-Xanthene: An Emerging Strategy to Create Next-Generation NIR-I/II Fluorophores

Near-infrared fluorescence imaging is vital for exploring the biological world. The short emissions (<650 nm) and small Stokes shifts (<30 nm) of current xanthene dyes obstruct their biological applications since a long time. Recently, a potent and universal THQ structural modification technique that shifts emission to the NIR-I/II range and enables a substantial Stokes shift (>100 nm) for THQ-modified xanthene dyes is established. Thus, a timely discussion of THQ-xanthene and its applications is extensive. Hence, the advent, working principles, development trajectory, and biological applications of THQ-xanthene dyes, especially in the fields of fluorescence probe-based sensing and imaging, cancer theranostics, and super-resolution imaging, are introduced. It is envisioned that the THQ modification tactic is a simple yet exceptional approach to upgrade the performance of conventional xanthene dyes. THQ-xanthene will advance the strides of xanthene-based potentials in early fluorescent diagnosis of diseases, cancer theranostics, and imaging-guided surgery.

Dual mode imaging guided multi-functional bio-targeted oxygen production probes for tumor therapy

Focused ultrasound ablation surgery (FUAS) is a novel therapy with a wide range of potential applications. However, synergists are crucial to the therapy process due to the ultrasonic energy's attenuation properties. As a result of the complex hypoxic environment in the tumor area and many factors, the existing synergists have limitations such as weak targeting, single imaging mode, and easy tumor recurrence after treatment. Because of the above deficiencies, this study intends to construct bio-targeted oxygen production probes consisting of Bifidobacterium that naturally target the hypoxia region of the tumor and multi-functional oxygen-producing nanoparticles equipped with IR780, perfluorohexane (PFH), CBP (carboplatin), and oxygen. The probes are expected to achieve targeted and synergistic FUAS therapy and dual-mode imaging to mediate tumor diagnosis and treatment. The oxygen and drugs carried in it are accurately released after FUAS stimulation, which is expected to alleviate tumor hypoxia, avoid tumor drug resistance, improve the effect of chemotherapy, and realize FUAS combined with chemotherapy antitumor therapy. This strategy is expected to make up for the deficiencies of existing synergists, improve the effectiveness and safety of treatment, and provide the foundation for future tumor therapy progress.

Sequential targeting biomimetic nano platform for enhanced mild photothermal therapy and chemotherapy of tumor

Tumor targeting drug delivery is of significant importance for the treatment of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) considering the presence of appreciable amount of tumor matrix and the absence of effective targets on the tumor cells. Hence in this study, a new therapeutic multifunctional nanoplatform with improved TNBC targeting ability and efficacy was constructed and used for therapy of TNBC. Specifically, curcumin loaded mesoporous polydopamine (mPDA/Cur) nanoparticles were synthesized. Thereafter, manganese dioxide (MnO₂) and a hybrid of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) membranes as well as cancer cell membranes were sequentially coated on the surface of mPDA/Cur to obtain mPDA/Cur@M/CM. It was found that two distinct kinds of cell membranes were able to endow the nano platform with homologous targeting ability, thereby achieving accurate delivery of drugs. Nanoparticles gathered in the tumor matrix can loosen the tumor matrix via the photothermal effect mediated by mPDA to rupture the physical barrier of tumor, which is conducive to the penetration and targeting of drugs to tumor cells in the deep tissues. Moreover, the existence of curcumin, MnO₂ and mPDA was able to promote the apoptosis of cancer cells by promoting increased cytotoxicity, enhanced Fenton-like reaction, and thermal damage, respectively. Overall, both in vitro and in vivo results showed that the designed biomimetic nanoplatform could significantly inhibit the tumor growth and thus provide an efficient novel therapeutic strategy for TNBC.