An EPR-Independent extravasation Strategy: Deformable leukocytes as vehicles for improved solid tumor therapy

Hydralazine loaded nanodroplets combined with ultrasound-targeted microbubble destruction to induce pyroptosis for tumor treatment

Pyroptosis, a novel type of programmed cell death (PCD), which provides a feasible therapeutic option for the treatment of tumors. However, due to the hypermethylation of the promoter, the critical protein Gasdermin E (GSDME) is lacking in the majority of cancer cells, which cannot start the pyroptosis process and leads to dissatisfactory therapeutic effects. Additionally, the quick clearance, systemic side effects, and low concentration at the tumor site of conventional pyroptosis reagents restrict their use in clinical cancer therapy. Here, we described a combination therapy that induces tumor cell pyroptosis via the use of ultrasound-targeted microbubble destruction (UTMD) in combination with DNA demethylation. The combined application of UTMD and hydralazine-loaded nanodroplets (HYD-NDs) can lead to the rapid release of HYD (a demethylation drug), which can cause the up-regulation of GSDME expression, and produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) by UTMD to cleave up-regulated GSDME, thereby inducing pyroptosis. HYD-NDs combined with ultrasound (US) group had the strongest tumor inhibition effect, and the tumor inhibition rate was 87.15% (HYD-NDs group: 51.41 ± 3.61%, NDs + US group: 32.73%±7.72%), indicating that the strategy had a more significant synergistic anti-tumor effect. In addition, as a new drug delivery carrier, HYD-NDs have great biosafety, tumor targeting, and ultrasound imaging performance. According to the results, the combined therapy reasonably regulated the process of tumor cell pyroptosis, which offered a new strategy for optimizing the therapy of GSDME-silenced solid tumors.

Fully Active Delivery of Nanodrugs In Vivo via Remote Optical Manipulation

The active delivery of nanodrugs has been a bottleneck problem in nanomedicine. While modification of nanodrugs with targeting agents can enhance their retention at the lesion location, the transportation of nanodrugs in the circulation system is still a passive process. The navigation of nanodrugs with external forces such as magnetic field has been shown to be effective for active delivery, but the existing techniques are limited to specific materials like magnetic nanoparticles. In this study, an alternative actuation method is proposed based on optical manipulation for remote navigation of nanodrugs in vivo, which is compatible with most of the common drug carriers and exhibits significantly higher manipulation precision. By the programmable scanning of the laser beam, the motion trajectory and velocity of the nanodrugs can be precisely controlled in real time, making it possible for intelligent drug delivery, such as inverse-flow transportation, selective entry into specific vascular branch, and dynamic circumvention across obstacles. In addition, the controlled mass delivery of nanodrugs can be realized through indirect actuation by the microflow field. The developed optical manipulation method provides a new solution for the active delivery of nanodrugs, with promising potential for the treatment of blood diseases such as leukemia and thrombosis.

Comparison of Tumor Non-specific and PD-L1 Specific Imaging by Near-Infrared Fluorescence/Cerenkov Luminescence Dual-Modality In-situ Imaging

Background

Labeled antibodies are excellent imaging agents in oncology to non-invasively visualize cancer-related antigens expression levels. However, tumor tracer uptake (TTU) of specific antibodies in-vivo may be inferior to non-specific IgG in some cases.

Objectives

To explore factors affecting labeled antibody visualization by PD-L1 specific and non-specific imaging of nude mouse tumors.

Methods

TTU was observed in RKO model on Cerenkov luminescence (CL) and near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) imaging of radionuclide 131I or NIRF dyes labeled Atezolizumab and IgG. A mixture of NIRF dyes labeled Atezolizumab and 131I-labeled IgG was injected, and TTU was observed in the RKO and HCT8 model by NIRF/CL dual-modality in-situ imaging. TTU were observed by 131I-labeled Atezolizumab and IgG in-vitro distribution.

Results

Labeled IgG concentrated more in tumors than Atezolizumab. NIRF/CL imaging in 24 to 168 h showed that TTU gradually decreased over time, which decreased more slowly on CL imaging compared to NIRF imaging. The distribution data in-vitro showed that TTU of 131I-labeled IgG was higher than that of 131I-labeled Atezolizumab at any time point.

Conclusion

Non-specific IgG may not be suitable as a control for Atezolizumab in comparing tumor PD-L1 expression in nude mice via labeled antibody optical imaging under certain circumstances.

Metabolites Profiling and Bioassays Reveal Bassia indica Ethanol Extract Protective Effect against Stomach Ulcers Development via HMGB1/TLR-4/NF-κB Pathway

Clinical manifestation of gastric ulcers is frequent, in addition to their costly drug regimens, warranting the development of novel drugs at lower costs. Although Bassia indica is well characterized for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant potential, capacity of its ethanol extract (BIEE) to prevent stomach ulcers' progression has not been reported. A nuclear protein termed high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) plays a key role in the formation of stomach ulcers by triggering a number of inflammatory responses. The main purpose of the current investigation was to evaluate the in vivo anti-inflammatory and anti-ulcerogenic capabilities of BIEE against ethanol-induced gastric ulcers in rats via the HMGB1/TLR-4/NF-B signaling pathway. HMGB1 and Nuclear factor kappa (NF-B) expression, IL-1β and Nrf2 contents showed an increase along with ulcer development, concurrent with an increase in immunohistochemical TLR-4 level. In contrast, pre-treatment with BIEE significantly reduced HMGB1 and Nuclear factor kappa (NF-B) expression levels, IL-1β and Nrf2 contents and ulcer index value. Such protective action was further confirmed based on histological and immunohistochemical TLR-4 assays. Untargeted analysis via UPLC-ESI-Qtof-MS has allowed for the comprehensive characterization of 40 metabolites in BIEE mostly belonged to two main chemical classes, viz., flavonoids and lipids. These key metabolites, particularly flavonoids, suggesting a mediation for the anti-inflammatory and anti-ulcerogenic properties of BIEE, pose it as a promising natural drug regimen for treatment of stomach ulcers.

Nanoengineering a Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework-8 Capable of Manipulating Energy Metabolism against Cancer Chemo-Phototherapy Resistance

Chemo-phototherapy has emerged as a promising approach to complement traditional cancer treatment and enhance therapeutic effects. However, it still faces the challenges of drug efflux transporter-mediated chemoresistance and heat shock proteins (HSPs)-mediated phototherapy tolerance, which both depend on an excessive supply of adenosine triphosphate. Therefore, manipulating energy metabolism to impair the expression or function of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and HSPs may be a prospective strategy to reverse cancer therapeutic resistance. Herein, a chondroitin sulfate (CS)-functionalized zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) chemo-phototherapy nanoplatform (CS/ZIF-8@A780/DOX NPs) is rationally designed that is capable of manipulating energy metabolism against cancer therapeutic resistance by integrating the photosensitizer IR780 iodide (IR780)-conjugated atovaquone (ATO) (A780) and the chemotherapeutic agent doxorubicin (DOX). Mechanistically, ATO and zinc ions that are released in the acidic tumor microenvironment can lead to systematic energy exhaustion through disturbing mitochondrial electron transport and the glycolysis process, thus suppressing the activity of P-gp and HSP70, respectively. In addition, CS is used on the surface of ZIF-8@A780/DOX NPs to improve the targeting capability to tumor tissues. These data provide an efficient strategy for manipulating energy metabolism for cancer treatment, especially for overcoming cancer chemo-phototherapy resistance.