Metabolic Reprogramming by Dual-targeting Biomimetic Nanoparticles for Enhanced Tumor Chemo-Immunotherapy

Advances in cell membrane-based biomimetic nanodelivery systems for natural products

Active components of natural products, which include paclitaxel, curcumin, gambogic acid, resveratrol, triptolide and celastrol, have promising anti-inflammatory, antitumor, anti-oxidant, and other pharmacological activities. However, their clinical application is limited due to low solubility, instability, low bioavailability, rapid metabolism, short half-life, and strong off-target toxicity. To overcome these drawbacks, cell membrane-based biomimetic nanosystems have emerged that avoid clearance by the immune system, enhance targeting, and prolong drug circulation, while also improving drug solubility and bioavailability, enhancing drug efficacy, and reducing side effects. This review summarizes recent advances in the preparation and coating of cell membrane-coated biomimetic nanosystems and in their applications to disease for targeted natural products delivery. Current challenges, limitations, and prospects in this field are also discussed, providing a research basis for the development of multifunctional biomimetic nanosystems for natural products.

Heterogeneity and interplay: the multifaceted role of cancer-associated fibroblasts in the tumor and therapeutic strategies

The journey of cancer development is a multifaceted and staged process. The array of treatments available for cancer varies significantly, dictated by the disease's type and stage. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), prevalent across various cancer types and stages, play a pivotal role in tumor genesis, progression, metastasis, and drug resistance. The strategy of concurrently targeting cancer cells and CAFs holds great promise in cancer therapy. In this review, we focus intently on CAFs, delving into their critical role in cancer's progression. We begin by exploring the origins, classification, and surface markers of CAFs. Following this, we emphasize the key cytokines and signaling pathways involved in the interplay between cancer cells and CAFs and their influence on the tumor immune microenvironment. Additionally, we examine current therapeutic approaches targeting CAFs. This article underscores the multifarious roles of CAFs within the tumor microenvironment and their potential applications in cancer treatment, highlighting their importance as key targets in overcoming drug resistance and enhancing the efficacy of tumor therapies.

Innovative lipid nanoparticles: A cutting-edge approach for potential renal cell carcinoma therapeutics

The kidney plays a crucial role in regulating homeostasis within the human body. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common form of kidney cancer, accounting for nearly 90 % of all renal malignancies. Despite the availability of various therapeutic strategies, RCC remains a challenging disease due to its resistance to conventional treatments. Nanotechnology has emerged as a promising field, offering new opportunities in cancer therapeutics. It presents several advantages over traditional methods, enabling diverse biomedical applications, including drug delivery, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), approximately 100 nm in size, are derived from a range of lipids and other biochemical compounds. these particulates are designed to overcome biological barriers, allowing them to selectively accumulate at diseased target sites for effective therapeutic action. Many pharmaceutically important compounds face challenges such as poor solubility in aqueous solutions, chemical and physiological instability, or toxicity. LNP technology stands out as a promising drug delivery system for bioactive organic compounds. This article reviews the applications of LNPs in RCC treatment and explores their potential clinical translation, identifying the most viable LNPs for medical use. With ongoing advancement in LNP-based anticancer strategies, there is a growing potential to improve the management and treatment of renal cancer.

Senescence-associated secretory phenotype regulation by dual drug delivery biomimetic nanoplatform for enhanced tumor chemotherapy

Many chemotherapies, which are still the main clinical treatment for primary tumors, will induce persistent DNA damage in non-tumor stromal cells, especially cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), and activate them to secrete senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). The transition could further result in the formation of tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment and cause drug resistance of neighboring tumor cells. To solve this dilemma, a multi-functional biomimetic drug delivery system (named mPtP@Lipo) was rationally developed by combining CAFs reshaper ginsenoside 20(S)-protopanaxadiol (PPD) and cisplatin prodrug (PtLA) to inhibit tumor progression and the formation of SASP. To achieve effective delivery of these molecules deep into the desmoplastic tumor, fibroblast membrane was fused with liposomes as a targeting carrier. In vitro and in vivo results showed that mPtP@Lipo could penetrate deep into the tumor, reverse CAFs phenotype and inhibit SASP formation, which then blocked the immunosuppressive progress and thus reinforced anti-tumor immune response. The combination of chemotherapeutics and CAFs regulator could achieve both tumor inhibition and tumor immune microenvironment remodeling. In conclusion, mPtP@Lipo provides a promising strategy for the comprehensive stromal-desmoplastic tumor treatment.

Development of Dual Diagnostic-Therapeutic Nanoformulation Effective Against Pancreatic Cancer in Animal Model

Purpose

Erythrocytes and fibroblasts in the pancreatic cancer tumor microenvironment promote tumor cell growth and invasion by providing nutrients and promoting immunosuppression. Additionally, they form a barrier against the penetration of chemotherapeutic drugs. Therefore, the search for diversified tumor-targeting materials plays an essential role in solving the above problems.

Methods

Physicochemical characterization of Graphene fluorescent nanoparticles (GFNPs) and nanomedicines were analyzed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), elemental analyzers and ultraviolet fluorescence (UV/FL) spectrophotometer. Localization of GFNPs in cell and tissue sections imaged with laser confocal microscope, fluorescence scanner and small animal in vivo imager. Qualitative detection and quantitative detection of GFNPs and GFNPs-GEM were performed using High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

Results

Based on the 3 nm average dimensions, GFNPs penetrate vascular endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells, achieve up to label 30% tumor cells and 60% cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) cells, and accurately label mature red blood cells in the tumor microenvironment. In orthotopic transplanted pancreatic cancer models, the fluorescence intensity of GFNPs in tumors showed a positive correlation with the cycle size of tumor development. The differential spatial distribution of GFNPs in three typical clinical pancreatic cancer samples demonstrated their diagnostic potential. To mediate the excellent targeting properties of GFNPs, we synthesized a series of nanomedicines using popular chemotherapeutic drugs, in which complex of GFNPs and gemcitabine (GFNPs-GEM) possessed stability in vivo and exhibited effective reduction of tumor volume and fewer side effects.

Conclusion

GFNPs with multiple targeting tumor microenvironments in pancreatic cancer possess diagnostic efficiency and therapeutic potential.

Enhancing cancer immunotherapy: Nanotechnology-mediated immunotherapy overcoming immunosuppression

Immunotherapy is an important cancer treatment method that offers hope for curing cancer patients. While immunotherapy has achieved initial success, a major obstacle to its widespread adoption is the inability to benefit the majority of patients. The success or failure of immunotherapy is closely linked to the tumor's immune microenvironment. Recently, there has been significant attention on strategies to regulate the tumor immune microenvironment in order to stimulate anti-tumor immune responses in cancer immunotherapy. The distinctive physical properties and design flexibility of nanomedicines have been extensively utilized to target immune cells (including tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), T cells, myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), and tumor-associated fibroblasts (TAFs)), offering promising advancements in cancer immunotherapy. In this article, we have reviewed treatment strategies aimed at targeting various immune cells to regulate the tumor immune microenvironment. The focus is on cancer immunotherapy models that are based on nanomedicines, with the goal of inducing or enhancing anti-tumor immune responses to improve immunotherapy. It is worth noting that combining cancer immunotherapy with other treatments, such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and photodynamic therapy, can maximize the therapeutic effects. Finally, we have identified the challenges that nanotechnology-mediated immunotherapy needs to overcome in order to design more effective nanosystems.

Reprogramming the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment through nanomedicine: an immunometabolism perspective

Increasing evidence indicates that immunotherapy is hindered by a hostile tumor microenvironment (TME) featured with deprivation of critical nutrients and pooling of immunosuppressive metabolites. Tumor cells and immunosuppressive cells outcompete immune effector cells for essential nutrients. Meanwhile, a wide range of tumor cell-derived toxic metabolites exerts negative impacts on anti-tumor immune response, diminishing the efficacy of immunotherapy. Nanomedicine with excellent targetability offers a novel approach to improving cancer immunotherapy via metabolically reprogramming the immunosuppressive TME. Herein, we review recent strategies of enhancing immunotherapeutic effects through rewiring tumor metabolism via nanomedicine. Attention is drawn on immunometabolic tactics for immune cells and stromal cells in the TME via nanomedicine. Additionally, we discuss future directions of developing metabolism-regulating nanomedicine for precise and efficacious cancer immunotherapy.

Boosting Checkpoint Immunotherapy with Biomimetic Nanodrug Delivery Systems

Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) has achieved unprecedented progress in tumor immunotherapy by blocking specific immune checkpoint molecules. However, the high biodistribution of the drug prevents it from specifically targeting tumor tissues, leading to immune-related adverse events. Biomimetic nanodrug delivery systems (BNDSs) readily applicable to ICB therapy have been widely developed at the preclinical stage to avoid immune-related adverse events. By exploiting or mimicking complex biological structures, the constructed BNDS as a novel drug delivery system has good biocompatibility and certain tumor-targeting properties. Herein, the latest findings regarding the aforementioned therapies associated with ICB therapy are highlighted. Simultaneously, prospective bioinspired engineering strategies can be designed to overcome the four-level barriers to drug entry into lesion sites. In future clinical translation, BNDS-based ICB combination therapy represents a promising avenue for cancer treatment.

Dendritic Polymer-Based Nanomedicines Remodel the Tumor Stroma: Improve Drug Penetration and Enhance Antitumor Immune Response

The dense extracellular matrix (ECM) in solid tumors, contributed by cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), hinders penetration of drugs and diminishes their therapeutic outcomes. A sequential treatment strategy of remodeling the ECM via a CAF modifier (dasatinib, DAS) is proposed to promote penetration of an immunogenic cell death (ICD) inducer (epirubicin, Epi) via apoptotic vesicles, ultimately enhancing the treatment efficacy against breast cancer. Dendritic poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate) (POEGMA)-based nanomedicines (poly[OEGMA-Dendron(G2)-Gly-Phe-Leu-Gly-DAS] (P-DAS) and poly[OEGMA-Dendron(G2)-hydrazone-Epi] (P-Epi)) are developed for sequential delivery of DAS and Epi, respectively. P-DAS reprograms CAFs to reduce collagen by downregulating collagen anabolism and energy metabolism, thereby reducing the ECM deposition. The regulated ECM can enhance tumor penetration of P-Epi to strengthen its ICD effect, leading to an amplified antitumor immune response. In breast cancer-bearing mice, this approach alleviates the ECM barrier, resulting in reduced tumor burden and increased cytotoxic T lymphocyte infiltration, and more encouragingly, synergizes effectively with anti-programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) therapy, significantly inhibiting tumor growth and preventing lung metastasis. Furthermore, systemic toxicity is barely detectable after sequential treatment with P-DAS and P-Epi. This approach opens a new avenue for treating desmoplastic tumors by metabolically targeting CAFs to overcome the ECM barrier.

Metabolic heterogeneity in tumor microenvironment - A novel landmark for immunotherapy

The surrounding non-cancer cells and tumor cells that make up the tumor microenvironment (TME) have various metabolic rhythms. TME metabolic heterogeneity is influenced by the intricate network of metabolic control within and between cells. DNA, protein, transport, and microbial levels are important regulators of TME metabolic homeostasis. The effectiveness of immunotherapy is also closely correlated with alterations in TME metabolism. The response of a tumor patient to immunotherapy is influenced by a variety of variables, including intracellular metabolic reprogramming, metabolic interaction between cells, ecological changes within and between tumors, and general dietary preferences. Although immunotherapy and targeted therapy have made great strides, their use in the accurate identification and treatment of tumors still has several limitations. The function of TME metabolic heterogeneity in tumor immunotherapy is summarized in this article. It focuses on how metabolic heterogeneity develops and is regulated as a tumor progresses, the precise molecular mechanisms and potential clinical significance of imbalances in intracellular metabolic homeostasis and intercellular metabolic coupling and interaction, as well as the benefits and drawbacks of targeted metabolism used in conjunction with immunotherapy. This offers insightful knowledge and important implications for individualized tumor patient diagnosis and treatment plans in the future.

Cell membrane coated nanoparticles as a biomimetic drug delivery platform for enhancing cancer immunotherapy

Cancer immunotherapy, a burgeoning modality for cancer treatment, operates by activating the autoimmune system to impede the growth of malignant cells. Although numerous immunotherapy strategies have been employed in clinical cancer therapy, the resistance of cancer cells to immunotherapeutic medications and other apprehensions impede the attainment of sustained advantages for most patients. Recent advancements in nanotechnology for drug delivery hold promise in augmenting the efficacy of immunotherapy. However, the efficacy is currently constrained by the inadequate specificity of delivery, low rate of response, and the intricate immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. In this context, the investigation of cell membrane coated nanoparticles (CMNPs) has revealed their ability to perform targeted delivery, immune evasion, controlled release, and immunomodulation. By combining the advantageous features of natural cell membranes and nanoparticles, CMNPs have demonstrated their unique potential in the realm of cancer immunotherapy. This review aims to emphasize recent research progress and elucidate the underlying mechanisms of CMNPs as an innovative drug delivery platform for enhancing cancer immunotherapy. Additionally, it provides a comprehensive overview of the current immunotherapeutic strategies involving different cell membrane types of CMNPs, with the intention of further exploration and optimization.

Cancer energy reprogramming and the immune responses

Cancer as an uncontrolled growth of cells due to existing mutation in host cells that may proliferate, induce angiogenesis and sometimes metastasize due to the favorable tumor microenvironment (TME). Since it kills more than any disease, biomedical science does not relent in studying the exact pathogenesis. It was believed to be a problem that lies in the nucleus of the host cells; however, recent oncology findings are shifting attention to the mitochondria as an adjuvant to cancer pathogenesis. The changes in the gene are strongly related to cellular metabolism and metabolic reprogramming. It is now understood that reprogramming the TME will have a direct effect on the immune cells' metabolism. Although there are a number of studies on immune cells' response towards tumor energy reprogramming and cancer progression, there is still no existence with the updated collation of these immune cells' response to distinct energy reprogramming in cancer studies. To this end, this mini review shed some light on cancer energy reprogramming mechanisms and enzyme degradation pathways, the cancer pathogenicity activity series involved with reduced lactate production, the specific immune cell responses due to the energy reprogramming. This study highlighted some prospects and future experiments in harnessing the host immune response towards the altered energy metabolism due to cancer.

The Application of Nanoparticles Targeting Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts

Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF) are the most abundant stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME), especially in solid tumors. It has been confirmed that it can not only interact with tumor cells to promote cancer progression and metastasis, but also affect the infiltration and function of immune cells to induce chemotherapy and immunotherapy resistance. So, targeting CAF has been considered an important method in cancer treatment. The rapid development of nanotechnology provides a good perspective to improve the efficiency of targeting CAF. At present, more and more researches have focused on the application of nanoparticles (NPs) in targeting CAF. These studies explored the effects of different types of NPs on CAF and the multifunctional nanomedicines that can eliminate CAF are able to enhance the EPR effect which facilitate the anti-tumor effect of themselves. There also exist amounts of studies focusing on using NPs to inhibit the activation and function of CAF to improve the therapeutic efficacy. The application of NPs targeting CAF needs to be based on an understanding of CAF biology. Therefore, in this review, we first summarized the latest progress of CAF biology, then discussed the types of CAF-targeting NPs and the main strategies in the current. The aim is to elucidate the application of NPs in targeting CAF and provide new insights for engineering nanomedicine to enhance immune response in cancer treatment.

A landscape of recent advances in lipid nanoparticles and their translational potential for the treatment of solid tumors

Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are biocompatible drug delivery systems that have found numerous applications in medicine. Their versatile nature enables the encapsulation and targeting of various types of medically relevant molecular cargo, including oligonucleotides, proteins, and small molecules for the treatment of diseases, such as cancer. Cancers that form solid tumors are particularly relevant for LNP-based therapeutics due to the enhanced permeation and retention effect that allows nanoparticles to accumulate within the tumor tissue. Additionally, LNPs can be formulated for both locoregional and systemic delivery depending on the tumor type and stage. To date, LNPs have been used extensively in the clinic to reduce systemic toxicity and improve outcomes in cancer patients by encapsulating chemotherapeutic drugs. Next-generation lipid nanoparticles are currently being developed to expand their use in gene therapy and immunotherapy, as well as to enable the co-encapsulation of multiple drugs in a single system. Other developments include the design of targeted LNPs to specific cells and tissues, and triggerable release systems to control cargo delivery at the tumor site. This review paper highlights recent developments in LNP drug delivery formulations and focuses on the treatment of solid tumors, while also discussing some of their current translational limitations and potential opportunities in the field.

Recent advances in nanomedicine for metabolism-targeted cancer therapy

Metabolism denotes the sum of biochemical reactions that maintain cellular function. Different from most normal differentiated cells, cancer cells adopt altered metabolic pathways to support malignant properties. Typically, almost all cancer cells need a large number of proteins, lipids, nucleotides, and energy in the form of ATP to support rapid division. Therefore, targeting tumour metabolism has been suggested as a generic and effective therapy strategy. With the rapid development of nanotechnology, nanomedicine promises to have a revolutionary impact on clinical cancer therapy due to many merits such as targeting, improved bioavailability, controllable drug release, and potentially personalized treatment compared to conventional drugs. This review comprehensively elucidates recent advances of nanomedicine in targeting important metabolites such as glucose, glutamine, lactate, cholesterol, and nucleotide for effective cancer therapy. Furthermore, the challenges and future development in this area are also discussed.

Advances in Nanodelivery Systems Based on Metabolism Reprogramming Strategies for Enhanced Tumor Therapy

Tumor development and metastasis are closely related to the complexity of the metabolism network. Recently, metabolism reprogramming strategies have attracted much attention in tumor metabolism therapy. Although there is preliminary success of metabolism therapy agents, their therapeutic effects have been restricted by the effective reaching of the tumor sites of drugs. Nanodelivery systems with unique physical properties and elaborate designs can specifically deliver to the tumors. In this review, we first summarize the research progress of nanodelivery systems based on tumor metabolism reprogramming strategies to enhance therapies by depleting glucose, inhibiting glycolysis, depleting lactic acid, inhibiting lipid metabolism, depleting glutamine and glutathione, and disrupting metal metabolisms combined with other therapies, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, photodynamic therapy, etc. We further discuss in detail the advantages of nanodelivery systems based on tumor metabolism reprogramming strategies for tumor therapy. As well as the opportunities and challenges for integrating nanodelivery systems into tumor metabolism therapy, we analyze the outlook for these emerging areas. This review is expected to improve our understanding of modulating tumor metabolisms for enhanced therapy.

Cancer-associated fibroblasts in neoadjuvant setting for solid cancers

Therapeutic approaches for cancer have become increasingly diverse in recent times. A comprehensive understanding of the tumor microenvironment (TME) holds great potential for enhancing the precision of tumor therapies. Neoadjuvant therapy offers the possibility of alleviating patient symptoms and improving overall quality of life. Additionally, it may facilitate the reduction of inoperable tumors and prevent potential preoperative micrometastases. Within the TME, cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) play a prominent role as they generate various elements that contribute to tumor progression. Particularly, extracellular matrix (ECM) produced by CAFs prevents immune cell infiltration into the TME, hampers drug penetration, and diminishes therapeutic efficacy. Therefore, this review provides a summary of the heterogeneity and interactions of CAFs within the TME, with a specific focus on the influence of neoadjuvant therapy on the microenvironment, particularly CAFs. Finally, we propose several potential and promising therapeutic strategies targeting CAFs, which may efficiently eliminate CAFs to decrease stroma density and impair their functions.

Current Advances on Nanomaterials Interfering with Lactate Metabolism for Tumor Therapy

Increasing numbers of studies have shown that tumor cells prefer fermentative glycolysis over oxidative phosphorylation to provide a vast amount of energy for fast proliferation even under oxygen-sufficient conditions. This metabolic alteration not only favors tumor cell progression and metastasis but also increases lactate accumulation in solid tumors. In addition to serving as a byproduct of glycolytic tumor cells, lactate also plays a central role in the construction of acidic and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, resulting in therapeutic tolerance. Recently, targeted drug delivery and inherent therapeutic properties of nanomaterials have attracted great attention, and research on modulating lactate metabolism based on nanomaterials to enhance antitumor therapy has exploded. In this review, the advanced tumor therapy strategies based on nanomaterials that interfere with lactate metabolism are discussed, including inhibiting lactate anabolism, promoting lactate catabolism, and disrupting the "lactate shuttle". Furthermore, recent advances in combining lactate metabolism modulation with other therapies, including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, photothermal therapy, and reactive oxygen species-related therapies, etc., which have achieved cooperatively enhanced therapeutic outcomes, are summarized. Finally, foreseeable challenges and prospective developments are also reviewed for the future development of this field.

Enhancing Cancer Chemo-Immunotherapy: Innovative Approaches for Overcoming Immunosuppression by Functional Nanomaterials

Chemotherapy is a critical modality in cancer therapy to combat malignant cell proliferation by directly attacking cancer cells and inducing immunogenic cell death, serving as a vital component of multi-modal treatment strategies for enhanced therapeutic outcomes. However, chemotherapy may inadvertently contribute to the immunosuppression of the tumor microenvironment (TME), inducing the suppression of antitumor immune responses, which can ultimately affect therapeutic efficacy. Chemo-immunotherapy, combining chemotherapy and immunotherapy in cancer treatment, has emerged as a ground-breaking approach to target and eliminate malignant tumors and revolutionize the treatment landscape, offering promising, durable responses for various malignancies. Notably, functional nanomaterials have substantially contributed to chemo-immunotherapy by co-delivering chemo-immunotherapeutic agents and modulating TME. In this review, recent advancements in chemo-immunotherapy are thus summarized to enhance treatment effectiveness, achieved by reversing the immunosuppressive TME (ITME) through the exploitation of immunotherapeutic drugs, or immunoregulatory nanomaterials. The effects of two-way immunomodulation and the causes of immunoaugmentation and suppression during chemotherapy are illustrated. The current strategies of chemo-immunotherapy to surmount the ITME and the functional materials to target and regulate the ITME are discussed and compared. The perspective on tumor immunosuppression reversal strategy is finally proposed.

Sniping Cancer Stem Cells with Nanomaterials

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) drive tumor initiation, progression, and therapeutic resistance due to their self-renewal and differentiation capabilities. Despite encouraging progress in cancer treatment, conventional approaches often fail to eliminate CSCs, necessitating the development of precise targeted strategies. Recent advances in materials science and nanotechnology have enabled promising CSC-targeted approaches, harnessing the power of tailoring nanomaterials in diverse therapeutic applications. This review provides an update on the current landscape of nanobased precision targeting approaches against CSCs. We elucidate the nuanced application of organic, inorganic, and bioinspired nanomaterials across a spectrum of therapeutic paradigms, encompassing targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and multimodal synergistic therapies. By examining the accomplishments and challenges in this potential field, we aim to inform future efforts to advance nanomaterial-based therapies toward more effective "sniping" of CSCs and tumor clearance.

Noninvasive Imaging of Tumor Glycolysis and Chemotherapeutic Resistance via De Novo Design of Molecular Afterglow Scaffold

Chemotherapeutic resistance poses a significant challenge in cancer treatment, resulting in the reduced efficacy of standard chemotherapeutic agents. Abnormal metabolism, particularly increased anaerobic glycolysis, has been identified as a major contributing factor to chemotherapeutic resistance. To address this issue, noninvasive imaging techniques capable of visualizing tumor glycolysis are crucial. However, the currently available methods (such as PET, MRI, and fluorescence) possess limitations in terms of sensitivity, safety, dynamic imaging capability, and autofluorescence. Here, we present the de novo design of a unique afterglow molecular scaffold based on hemicyanine and rhodamine dyes, which holds promise for low-background optical imaging. In contrast to previous designs, this scaffold exhibits responsive "OFF-ON" afterglow signals through spirocyclization, thus enabling simultaneous control of photodynamic effects and luminescence efficacy. This leads to a larger dynamic range, broader detection range, higher signal enhancement ratio, and higher sensitivity. Furthermore, the integration of multiple functionalities simplifies probe design, eliminates the need for spectral overlap, and enhances reliability. Moreover, we have expanded the applications of this afterglow molecular scaffold by developing various probes for different molecular targets. Notably, we developed a water-soluble pH-responsive afterglow nanoprobe for visualizing glycolysis in living mice. This nanoprobe monitors the effects of glycolytic inhibitors or oxidative phosphorylation inhibitors on tumor glycolysis, providing a valuable tool for evaluating the tumor cell sensitivity to these inhibitors. Therefore, the new afterglow molecular scaffold presents a promising approach for understanding tumor metabolism, monitoring chemotherapeutic resistance, and guiding precision medicine in the future.

A dual drug-loaded peptide system with morphological transformation prolongs drug retention and inhibits breast cancer growth

The treatment of breast cancer relies heavily on chemotherapy, but chemotherapy is limited by the disadvantages of poor targeting, susceptibility to extracellular matrix (ECM) interference and a short duration of action in tumor cells. To address these limitations, we developed an amphipathic peptide containing an RGD motif, Pep1, that encapsulated paclitaxel (PTX) and losartan potassium (LP) to form the drug-loaded peptide PL/Pep1. PL/Pep1 self-assembled into spherical nanoparticles (NPs) under normal physiological conditions and transformed into aggregates containing short nanofibers at acidic pH. The RGD peptide facilitated tumor targeting and the aggregates prolonged drug retention in the tumor, which allowed more drug to reach and accumulate in the tumor tissue to promote apoptosis and remodel the tumor microenvironment. The results of in vitro and in vivo experiments confirmed the superiority of PL/Pep1 in terms of targeting, prolonged retention and facilitated penetration for antitumor therapy. In conclusion, amphipathic peptides as coloaded drug carriers are a new platform and strategy for breast cancer chemotherapy.

Stimuli-responsive (nano)architectures for phytochemical delivery in cancer therapy

The use of phytochemicals for purpose of cancer therapy has been accelerated due to resistance of tumor cells to conventional chemotherapy drugs and therefore, monotherapy does not cause significant improvement in the prognosis and survival of patients. Therefore, administration of natural products alone or in combination with chemotherapy drugs due to various mechanisms of action has been suggested. However, cancer therapy using phytochemicals requires more attention because of poor bioavailability of compounds and lack of specific accumulation at tumor site. Hence, nanocarriers for specific delivery of phytochemicals in tumor therapy has been suggested. The pharmacokinetic profile of natural products and their therapeutic indices can be improved. The nanocarriers can improve potential of natural products in crossing over BBB and also, promote internalization in cancer cells through endocytosis. Moreover, (nano)platforms can deliver both natural and synthetic anti-cancer drugs in combination cancer therapy. The surface functionalization of nanostructures with ligands improves ability in internalization in tumor cells and improving cytotoxicity of natural compounds. Interestingly, stimuli-responsive nanostructures that respond to endogenous and exogenous stimuli have been employed for delivery of natural compounds in cancer therapy. The decrease in pH in tumor microenvironment causes degradation of bonds in nanostructures to release cargo and when changes in GSH levels occur, it also mediates drug release from nanocarriers. Moreover, enzymes in the tumor microenvironment such as MMP-2 can mediate drug release from nanocarriers and more progresses in targeted drug delivery obtained by application of nanoparticles that are responsive to exogenous stimulus including light.

Biomimetic Cell-Derived Nanoparticles: Emerging Platforms for Cancer Immunotherapy

Cancer immunotherapy can significantly prevent tumor growth and metastasis by activating the autoimmune system without destroying normal cells. Although cancer immunotherapy has made some achievements in clinical cancer treatment, it is still restricted by systemic immunotoxicity, immune cell dysfunction, cancer heterogeneity, and the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (ITME). Biomimetic cell-derived nanoparticles are attracting considerable interest due to their better biocompatibility and lower immunogenicity. Moreover, biomimetic cell-derived nanoparticles can achieve different preferred biological effects due to their inherent abundant source cell-relevant functions. This review summarizes the latest developments in biomimetic cell-derived nanoparticles for cancer immunotherapy, discusses the applications of each biomimetic system in cancer immunotherapy, and analyzes the challenges for clinical transformation.

Zinc-Carnosine Metallodrug Network as Dual Metabolism Inhibitor Overcoming Metabolic Reprogramming for Efficient Cancer Therapy

The targeting of tumor metabolism as a novel strategy for cancer therapy has attracted tremendous attention. Herein, we develop a dual metabolism inhibitor, Zn-carnosine metallodrug network nanoparticles (Zn-Car MNs), which exhibits good Cu-depletion and Cu-responsive drug release, causing potent inhibition of both OXPHOS and glycolysis. Notably, Zn-Car MNs can decrease the activity of cytochrome c oxidase and the content of NAD⁺, so as to reduce ATP production in cancer cells. Thereby, energy deprivation, together with the depolarized mitochondrial membrane potential and increased oxidative stress, results in apoptosis of cancer cells. In result, Zn-Car MNs exerted more efficient metabolism-targeted therapy than the classic copper chelator, tetrathiomolybdate (TM), in both breast cancer (sensitive to copper depletion) and colon cancer (less sensitive to copper depletion) models. The efficacy and therapy of Zn-Car MNs suggest the possibility to overcome the drug resistance caused by metabolic reprogramming in tumors and has potential clinical relevance.

Smart Nanoparticle-Based Platforms for Regulating Tumor Microenvironment and Cancer Immunotherapy

Tumor development and metastasis are closely related to the tumor microenvironment (TME). Recently, several studies indicate that modulating TME can enhance cancer immunotherapy. Among various approaches to modulating TME, nanoparticles (NPs) with unique inherent advantages and smart modified characteristics are promising candidates in delivering drugs to cancer cells, amplifying the therapeutic effects, and leading to a cascade of immune responses. In this review, several smart NP-based platforms are briefly introduced, such as responsive NPs, targeting NPs, and the composition of TME, including dendritic cells, macrophages, fibroblasts, endothelial cells, myeloid-derived suppressor cells, and regulatory T cells. Moreover, the recent applications of smart NP-based platforms in regulating TME and cancer immunotherapy are briefly introduced. Last, the advantages and disadvantages of these smart NP-based platforms in potential clinical translation are discussed.

Pancreatic cancer and fibrosis: Targeting metabolic reprogramming and crosstalk of cancer-associated fibroblasts in the tumor microenvironment

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most dangerous types of cancer today, notable for its low survival rate and fibrosis. Deciphering the cellular composition and intercellular interactions in the tumor microenvironment (TME) is a necessary prerequisite to combat pancreatic cancer with precision. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), as major producers of extracellular matrix (ECM), play a key role in tumor progression. CAFs display significant heterogeneity and perform different roles in tumor progression. Tumor cells turn CAFs into their slaves by inducing their metabolic dysregulation, exacerbating fibrosis to acquire drug resistance and immune evasion. This article reviews the impact of metabolic reprogramming, effect of obesity and cellular crosstalk of CAFs and tumor cells on fibrosis and describes relevant therapies targeting the metabolic reprogramming.

Targeted nanomedicines remodeling immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment for enhanced cancer immunotherapy

Cancer immunotherapy has significantly flourished and revolutionized the limited conventional tumor therapies, on account of its good safety and long-term memory ability. Discouragingly, low patient response rates and potential immune-related side effects make it rather challenging to literally bring immunotherapy from bench to bedside. However, it has become evident that, although the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) plays a pivotal role in facilitating tumor progression and metastasis, it also provides various potential targets for remodeling the immunosuppressive TME, which can consequently bolster the effectiveness of antitumor response and tumor suppression. Additionally, the particular characteristics of TME, in turn, can be exploited as avenues for designing diverse precise targeting nanomedicines. In general, it is of urgent necessity to deliver nanomedicines for remodeling the immunosuppressive TME, thus improving the therapeutic outcomes and clinical translation prospects of immunotherapy. Herein, we will illustrate several formation mechanisms of immunosuppressive TME. More importantly, a variety of strategies concerning remodeling immunosuppressive TME and strengthening patients' immune systems, will be reviewed. Ultimately, we will discuss the existing obstacles and future perspectives in the development of antitumor immunotherapy. Hopefully, the thriving bloom of immunotherapy will bring vibrancy to further exploration of comprehensive cancer treatment.

Synthesis of Glycolysis Inhibitor PFK15 and Its Synergistic Action with an Approved Multikinase Antiangiogenic Drug on Human Endothelial Cell Migration and Proliferation

Activated endothelial, immune, and cancer cells prefer glycolysis to obtain energy for their proliferation and migration. Therefore, the blocking of glycolysis can be a promising strategy against cancer and autoimmune disease progression. Inactivation of the glycolytic enzyme PFKFB3 (6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-biphosphatase) suppresses glycolysis level and contributes to decreased proliferation and migration of cancer (tumorigenesis) and endothelial (angiogenesis) cells. Recently, several glycolysis inhibitors have been developed, among them (E)-1-(pyridin-4-yl)-3-(quinolin-2-yl)prop-2-en-1-one (PFK15) that is considered as one of the most promising. It is known that PFK15 decreases glucose uptake into the endothelial cells and efficiently blocks pathological angiogenesis. However, no study has described sufficiently PFK15 synthesis enabling its general availability. In this paper we provide all necessary details for PFK15 preparation and its advanced characterization. On the other hand, there are known tyrosine kinase inhibitors (e.g., sunitinib), that affect additional molecular targets and efficiently block angiogenesis. From a biological point of view, we have studied and proved the synergistic inhibitory effect by simultaneous administration of glycolysis inhibitor PFK15 and multikinase inhibitor sunitinib on the proliferation and migration of HUVEC. Our results suggest that suppressing the glycolytic activity of endothelial cells in combination with growth factor receptor blocking can be a promising antiangiogenic treatment.

Nano-drug delivery system for pancreatic cancer: A visualization and bibliometric analysis

Background: Nano drug delivery system (NDDS) can significantly improve the delivery and efficacy of drugs against pancreatic cancer (PC) in many ways. The purpose of this study is to explore the related research fields of NDDS for PC from the perspective of bibliometrics.

Methods: Articles and reviews on NDDS for PC published between 2003 and 2022 were obtained from the Web of Science Core Collection. CiteSpace, VOSviewer, R-bibliometrix, and Microsoft Excel were comprehensively used for bibliometric and visual analysis.

Results: A total of 1329 papers on NDDS for PC were included. The number of papers showed an upward trend over the past 20 years. The United States contributed the most papers, followed by China, and India. Also, the United States had the highest number of total citations and H-index. The institution with the most papers was Chinese Acad Sci, which was also the most important in international institutional cooperation. Professors Couvreur P and Kazuoka K made great achievements in this field. JOURNAL OF CONTROLLED RELEASE published the most papers and was cited the most. The topics related to the tumor microenvironment such as “tumor microenvironment”, “tumor penetration”, “hypoxia”, “exosome”, and “autophagy”, PC treatment-related topics such as “immunotherapy”, “combination therapy”, “alternating magnetic field/magnetic hyperthermia”, and “ultrasound”, and gene therapy dominated by “siRNA” and “miRNA” were the research hotspots in the field of NDDS for PC.

Conclusion: This study systematically uncovered a holistic picture of the performance of NDDS for PC-related literature over the past 20 years. We provided scholars to understand key information in this field with the perspective of bibliometrics, which we believe may greatly facilitate future research in this field.

Glycolysis in tumor microenvironment as a target to improve cancer immunotherapy

Cancer cells and immune cells all undergo remarkably metabolic reprogramming during the oncogenesis and tumor immunogenic killing processes. The increased dependency on glycolysis is the most typical trait, profoundly involved in the tumor immune microenvironment and cancer immunity regulation. However, how to best utilize glycolytic targets to boost anti-tumor immunity and improve immunotherapies are not fully illustrated. In this review, we describe the glycolytic remodeling of various immune cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME) and the deleterious effects of limited nutrients and acidification derived from enhanced tumor glycolysis on immunological anti-tumor capacity. Moreover, we elucidate the underlying regulatory mechanisms of glycolytic reprogramming, including the crosstalk between metabolic pathways and immune checkpoint signaling. Importantly, we summarize the potential glycolysis-related targets that are expected to improve immunotherapy benefits. Our understanding of metabolic effects on anti-tumor immunity will be instrumental for future therapeutic regimen development.

Membrane-Coated Biomimetic Nanoparticles: A State-of-the-Art Multifunctional Weapon for Tumor Immunotherapy

The advent of immunotherapy, which improves the immune system’s ability to attack and eliminate tumors, has brought new hope for tumor treatment. However, immunotherapy regimens have seen satisfactory results in only some patients. The development of nanotechnology has remarkably improved the effectiveness of tumor immunotherapy, but its application is limited by its passive immune clearance, poor biocompatibility, systemic immunotoxicity, etc. Therefore, membrane-coated biomimetic nanoparticles have been developed by functional, targeting, and biocompatible cell membrane coating technology. Membrane-coated nanoparticles have the advantages of homologous targeting, prolonged circulation, and the avoidance of immune responses, thus remarkably improving the therapeutic efficacy of tumor immunotherapy. Herein, this review explores the recent advances and future perspectives of cell membrane-coated nanoparticles for tumor immunotherapy.