Immunogenic-cell-killing and immunosuppression-inhibiting nanomedicine

Research Advances of Lipid Nanoparticles in the Treatment of Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common type of gastrointestinal tract (GIT) cancer and poses an enormous threat to human health. Current strategies for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) therapy primarily focus on chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy; however, their adverse reactions and drug resistance limit their clinical application. Advances in nanotechnology have rendered lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) a promising nanomaterial-based drug delivery system for CRC therapy. LNPs can adapt to the biological characteristics of CRC by modifying their formulation, enabling the selective delivery of drugs to cancer tissues. They overcome the limitations of traditional therapies, such as poor water solubility, nonspecific biodistribution, and limited bioavailability. Herein, we review the composition and targeting strategies of LNPs for CRC therapy. Subsequently, the applications of these nanoparticles in CRC treatment including drug delivery, thermal therapy, and nucleic acid-based gene therapy are summarized with examples provided. The last section provides a glimpse into the advantages, current limitations, and prospects of LNPs in the treatment of CRC.

Nanomedicine Remodels Tumor Microenvironment for Solid Tumor Immunotherapy

Although immunotherapy is relatively effective in treating hematological malignancies, their efficacy against solid tumors is still suboptimal or even noneffective presently. Compared to hematological cancers, solid tumors exhibit strikingly different immunosuppressive microenvironment, severely deteriorating the efficacy of immunotherapy: (1) chemical features such as hypoxia and mild acidity suppress the activity of immune cells, (2) the pro-tumorigenic domestication of immune cells in the microenvironment within the solid tumors further undermines the effectiveness of immunotherapy, and (3) the dense physical barrier of solid tumor tissues prevents the effective intratumoral infiltration and contact killing of active immune cells. Therefore, we believe that reversing the immunosuppressive microenvironment are of critical priority for the immunotherapy against solid tumors. Due to their unique morphologies, structures, and compositions, nanomedicines have become powerful tools for achieving this goal. In this Perspective, we will first briefly introduce the immunosuppressive microenvironment of solid tumors and then summarize the most recent progresses in nanomedicine-based immunotherapy for solid tumors by remodeling tumor immune-microenvironment in a comprehensive manner. It is highly expected that this Perspective will aid in advancing immunotherapy against solid tumors, and we are highly optimistic on the future development in this burgeoning field.

A lipid/PLGA nanocomplex to reshape tumor immune microenvironment for colon cancer therapy

Immune checkpoint blockade therapy provides a new strategy for tumor treatment; however, the insufficient infiltration of cytotoxic T cells and immunosuppression in tumor microenvironment lead to unsatisfied effects. Herein, we reported a lipid/PLGA nanocomplex (RDCM) co-loaded with the photosensitizer Ce6 and the indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) inhibitor 1MT to improve immunotherapy of colon cancer. Arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) as the targeting moiety was conjugated on 1,2-distearoyl-snglycero-3-phosphoethanolamine lipid via polyethylene glycol (PEG), and programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) peptide inhibitor DPPA (sequence: CPLGVRGK-GGG-d(NYSKPTDRQYHF)) was immobilized on the terminal group of PEG via matrix metalloproteinase 2 sensitive peptide linker. The Ce6 and 1MT were encapsulated in PLGA nanoparticles. The drug loaded nanoparticles were composited with RGD and DPPA modified lipid and lecithin to form lipid/PLGA nanocomplexes. When the nanocomplexes were delivered to tumor, DPPA was released by the cleavage of a matrix metalloproteinase 2-sensitive peptide linker for PD-L1 binding. RGD facilitated the cellular internalization of nanocomplexes via avβ3 integrin. Strong immunogenic cell death was induced by 1O2 generated from Ce6 irradiation under 660 nm laser. 1MT inhibited the activity of IDO and reduced the inhibition of cytotoxic T cells caused by kynurenine accumulation in the tumor microenvironment. The RDCM facilitated the maturation of dendritic cells, inhibited the activity of IDO, and markedly recruited the proportion of tumor-infiltrating cytotoxic T cells in CT26 tumor-bearing mice, triggering a robust immunological memory effect, thus effectively preventing tumor metastasis. The results indicated that the RDCM with dual IDO and PD-L1 inhibition effects is a promising platform for targeted photoimmunotherapy of colon cancer.

Engineered a dual-targeting HA-TPP/A nanoparticle for combination therapy against KRAS-TP53 co-mutation in gastrointestinal cancers

KRAS-TP53 co-mutation is strongly associated with poor prognosis and high malignancy in gastrointestinal cancers. Therefore, a novel approach to oncotherapy may lie in combination therapy targeting both KRAS and TP53. Herein, we present a novel self-assembled nanoparticle (HA-TPP/A) that are functionalized nano-carrier hyaluronic acid (HA)-TPP conjugate (HA-TPP) to degrade mutant p53 proteins (mutp53) and co-deliver AMG510 for treating KRAS-TP53 co-alteration of gastrointestinal cancers by inhibiting the mutant KRAS and mutp53 signaling pathways. The HA-TPP/A nanoparticles led to ubiquitination-dependent proteasomal degradation of mutp53 by targeting damage to mitochondria. Furthermore, these nanoparticles abrogated the gain-of-function (GOF) phenotypes of mutp53 and increased sensitivity to AMG510-induced cell killing, thereby reducing cell proliferation and migration in gastrointestinal cancer with KRAS-TP53 co-mutation. The co-loaded HA-TPP/A nanoparticles demonstrated remarkable therapeutic efficacy in a tumor-bearing mouse model, particularly in KRAS-TP53 double mutant expressing cancer cells, compared with single drug and combined free drug groups. Notably, HA-TPP/A is the first reported nanoparticle with an ability to co-target KRAS-TP53, providing a promising approach for therapy in highly malignant gastrointestinal tumors and potentially expanding clinical indications for AMG510 targeted therapies in gastrointestinal tumors.

Caffeic acid-grafted chitosan/sodium alginate/nanoclay-based multifunctional 3D-printed hybrid scaffolds for local drug release therapy after breast cancer surgery

Breast cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors in women all over the world. Mastectomy is the most effective treatment, but there are serious problems such as high tumor recurrence rate and side effects of chemotherapy. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a therapeutic strategy that can effectively promote postoperative wound healing and inhibit local tumor recurrence. In this study, a 3D printing scaffold based on carbon dots-curcumin nano-drug release (CCNPs) was developed as a local drug delivery platform (named CCNACA using CCNPs, Sodium alginate, Nanoclay and Caffeic Acid grafted Chitosan as raw materials), which has the ability to visualize drug release. The 14-day drug release test in vitro showed that the tumor inhibition rate of CCNACA scaffolds on breast cancer cells (MCF-7) was 73.77 ± 1.68 %. And the CCNACA scaffolds had good long-term antibacterial (Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus) activity. Animal experiments have shown that implanting CCNACA scaffolds into surgical defects can inhibit postoperative residual cancer cells, reduce inflammation, promote angiogenesis, and repair tissue defects caused by surgery. In summary, the local drug delivery system of this manuscript has great potential in wound healing and prevention of tumor recurrence after breast cancer surgery.

A Dual-Targeting Liposome Enhances Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Chemoimmunotherapy through Inducing Immunogenic Cell Death and Inhibiting STAT3 Activation

Immunotherapy gains increasing focus in treating triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), while its efficacy is greatly restricted owing to low tumor immunogenicity and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (ITM). Herein, a LyP-1 and chondroitin sulfate (CS) dual-modified liposome co-loaded with paclitaxel (PTX) and cryptotanshinone (CTS), namely CS/LyP-1-PC Lip, is engineered for TNBC chemoimmunotherapy via induction of immunogenic cell death (ICD) and inhibition of signal transducer and activator of transcript-3 (STAT3) activation. CS/LyP-1-PC Lip enhances cellular uptake through p32 and CD44 dual receptor-mediated endocytosis. Within the tumor, the CS layer is continuously detached by hyaluronidase to release drugs. Subsequently, CTS sensitizes the cytotoxicity of PTX to 4T1 tumor cells. PTX induces ICD of tumor cells and facilitates infiltration of cytotoxic T lymphocyte to provoke immune response. Meanwhile, the concomitant delivery of CTS inhibits STAT3 activation to decrease infiltration of regulatory T cell, M2-type tumor-associated macrophage, and myeloid-derived suppressor cell, thus reversing ITM. Markedly, the dual-targeting liposome shows superior anti-tumor efficacy in subcutaneous TNBC mice and significant lung metastasis suppression in tumor metastasis model. Overall, this work offers a feasible combination regimen and a promising nanoplatform for the development of TNBC chemoimmunotherapy.

Integrative bioinformatics analysis of WDHD1: a potential biomarker for pan-cancer prognosis, diagnosis, and immunotherapy

BACKGROUND

Although WD repeat and high-mobility group box DNA binding protein 1 (WDHD1) played an essential role in DNA replication, chromosome stability, and DNA damage repair, the panoramic picture of WDHD1 in human tumors remains unclear. Hence, this study aims to comprehensively characterize WDHD1 across 33 human cancers.

METHODS

Based on publicly available databases such as TCGA, GTEx, and HPA, we used a bioinformatics approach to systematically explore the genomic features and biological functions of WDHD1 in pan-cancer.

RESULTS

WDHD1 mRNA levels were significantly increased in more than 20 types of tumor tissues. Elevated WDHD1 expression was associated with significantly shorter overall survival (OS) in 10 tumors. Furthermore, in uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma (UCEC) and liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC), WDHD1 expression was significantly associated with higher histological grades and pathological stages. In addition, WDHD1 had a high diagnostic value among 16 tumors (area under the ROC curve [AUC] > 0.9). Functional enrichment analyses suggested that WDHD1 probably participated in many oncogenic pathways such as E2F and MYC targets (false discovery rate [FDR] < 0.05), and it was involved in the processes of DNA replication and DNA damage repair (p.adjust < 0.05). WDHD1 expression also correlated with the half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of rapamycin (4 out of 10 cancers) and paclitaxel (10 out of 10 cancers). Overall, WDHD1 was negatively associated with immune cell infiltration and might promote tumor immune escape. Our analysis of genomic alterations suggested that WDHD1 was altered in 1.5% of pan-cancer cohorts and the "mutation" was the predominant type of alteration. Finally, through correlation analysis, we found that WDHD1 might be closely associated with tumor heterogeneity, tumor stemness, mismatch repair (MMR), and RNA methylation modification, which were all processes associated with the tumor progression.

CONCLUSIONS

Our pan-cancer analysis of WDHD1 provides valuable insights into the genomic characterization and biological functions of WDHD1 in human cancers and offers some theoretical support for the future use of WDHD1-targeted therapies, immunotherapies, and chemotherapeutic combinations for the management of tumors.

Sequential Targeting Hybrid Nanovesicles Composed of Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cell-Derived Exosomes and Liposomes for Enhanced Cancer Immunochemotherapy

Paclitaxel (PTX)-based chemotherapy remains the main approach to treating lung cancer but systemic toxicity limits its use. As chimeric antigen receptor-T (CAR-T) cell-derived exosomes contain tumor-targeted CARs and cytotoxic granules (granzyme B and perforin), they are considered potential delivery vehicles for PTX. However, the low drug-loading capacity and hepatotropic properties of exosomes are obstacles to their application to extrahepatic cancer. Here, a hybrid nanovesicle named Lip-CExo@PTX was designed for immunochemotherapy of lung cancer by fusing exosomes derived from bispecific CAR-T cells targeting both mesothelin (MSLN) and programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) with lung-targeted liposomes. Due to the lung-targeting ability of the liposomes, over 95% of intravenously administered Lip-CExo@PTX accumulated in lung tissue. In addition, with the help of the anti-MSLN single-chain variable fragment (scFv), the PTX and cytotoxic granules inside Lip-CExo@PTX were further delivered into MSLN-positive tumors. Notably, the anti-PD-L1 scFv on Lip-CExo@PTX blocked PD-L1 on the tumors to avoid T cell exhaustion and promoted PTX-induced immunogenic cell death. Furthermore, Lip-CExo@PTX prolonged the survival time of tumor-bearing mice in a CT-26 metastatic lung cancer model. Therefore, Lip-CExo@PTX may deliver PTX to tumor cells through sequential targeted delivery and enhance the antitumor effects, providing a promising strategy for immunochemotherapy of lung cancer.

Nanomaterials with dual immunomodulatory functions for synergistic therapy of breast cancer brain metastases

A long-standing paucity of effective therapies results in the poor outcomes of triple-negative breast cancer brain metastases. Immunotherapy has made progress in the treatment of tumors, but limited by the non-immunogenicity of tumors and strong immunosuppressive environment, patients with TNBC brain metastases have not yet benefited from immunotherapy. Dual immunoregulatory strategies with enhanced immune activation and reversal of the immunosuppressive microenvironment provide new therapeutic options for patients. Here, we propose a cocktail-like therapeutic strategy of microenvironment regulation-chemotherapy-immune synergistic sensitization and construct reduction-sensitive immune microenvironment regulation nanomaterials (SIL@T). SIL@T modified with targeting peptide penetrates the BBB and is subsequently internalized into metastatic breast cancer cells, releasing silybin and oxaliplatin responsively in the cells. SIL@T preferentially accumulates at the metastatic site and can significantly prolong the survival period of model animals. Mechanistic studies have shown that SIL@T can effectively induce immunogenic cell death of metastatic cells, activate immune responses and increase infiltration of CD8⁺ T cells. Meanwhile, the activation of STAT3 in the metastatic foci is attenuated and the immunosuppressive microenvironment is reversed. This study demonstrates that SIL@T with dual immunomodulatory functions provides a promising immune synergistic therapy strategy for breast cancer brain metastases.

Polysaccharide-Based Stimulus-Responsive Nanomedicines for Combination Cancer Immunotherapy

Cancer immunotherapy is a promising antitumor approach, whereas nontherapeutic side effects, tumor microenvironment (TME) intricacy, and low tumor immunogenicity limit its therapeutic efficacy. In recent years, combination immunotherapy with other therapies has been proven to considerably increase antitumor efficacy. However, achieving codelivery of the drugs to the tumor site remains a major challenge. Stimulus-responsive nanodelivery systems show controlled drug delivery and precise drug release. Polysaccharides, a family of potential biomaterials, are widely used in the development of stimulus-responsive nanomedicines due to their unique physicochemical properties, biocompatibility, and modifiability. Here, the antitumor activity of polysaccharides and several combined immunotherapy strategies (e.g., immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy, or photothermal therapy) are summarized. More importantly, the recent progress of polysaccharide-based stimulus-responsive nanomedicines for combination cancer immunotherapy is discussed, with the focus on construction of nanomedicine, targeted delivery, drug release, and enhanced antitumor effects. Finally, the limitations and application prospects of this new field are discussed.

Tumor microenvironment-responsive spherical nucleic acid nanoparticles for enhanced chemo-immunotherapy

Certain chemotherapeutics can induce tumor cells' immunogenic cell death (ICD), release tumor antigens, and thereby trigger personalized antitumor immune responses. Co-delivery of adjuvants using nanocarriers could amplify the ICD-induced tumor-specific immunity achieving a synergistic chemo-immunotherapeutic effect. However, complicated preparation, low drug loading efficiency, and potential carrier-associated toxicity are the major challenges that limited its clinical applications. Herein, a carrier-free core-shell nanoparticle (MPLA-CpG-sMMP9-DOX, MCMD NPs) was constructed by facile self-assembly of spherical nucleic acids (SNA) with two adjuvants of CpG ODN and monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA) as a core and doxorubicin (DOX) radially around the dual-adjuvants SNA as a shell. The results demonstrated that MCMD NPs could enhance drugs accumulation in tumors, and release DOX upon enzymatic degradation of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) peptide in the tumor microenvironment (TME), which enhanced the direct-killing effect of DOX on tumor cells. The core of MPLA-CpG SNA efficiently boosted the ICD-induced antitumor immune response to further attack tumor cells. Thus, MCMD NPs achieved a synergistic therapeutic effect of chemo-immunotherapy with reduced off-target toxicity. This study provided an efficient strategy for the development of a carrier-free nano-delivery system for enhanced cancer chemo-immunotherapy.

Smartphone-based platforms implementing microfluidic detection with image-based artificial intelligence

The frequent outbreak of global infectious diseases has prompted the development of rapid and effective diagnostic tools for the early screening of potential patients in point-of-care testing scenarios. With advances in mobile computing power and microfluidic technology, the smartphone-based mobile health platform has drawn significant attention from researchers developing point-of-care testing devices that integrate microfluidic optical detection with artificial intelligence analysis. In this article, we summarize recent progress in these mobile health platforms, including the aspects of microfluidic chips, imaging modalities, supporting components, and the development of software algorithms. We document the application of mobile health platforms in terms of the detection objects, including molecules, viruses, cells, and parasites. Finally, we discuss the prospects for future development of mobile health platforms.

ECM-Inspired Hydrogels with ADSCs Encapsulation for Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment

Due to their intrinsic anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties, adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) are explored as a promising alternative in treating rheumatoid arthritis (RA). To address the poor survival and function loss of directly injected stem cells, efforts in this area are focus on the generation of efficient cell delivery vehicles. Herein, a novel extracellular matrix (ECM)-inspired injectable hydrogel for ADSCs encapsulation and RA treatment is proposed. The hydrogel with dendritic polylysine and polysaccharide components is formed through the reversible Schiff base crosslinking. It possesses self-healing capability, superior mechanical properties, minimal toxicity, and immunomodulatory ability. When encapsulated with ADSCs, the hydrogel could recover chronic inflammation by directly reversing the dominant macrophage phenotype from M1 to M2 and inhibiting the migration of fibroblast-like synoviocytes. Through a collagen-induced arthritis rat model, the tremendous therapeutic outcomes of this ADSCs-laden hydrogel, including inflammation attenuation, cartilage protection, and bone mineral density promotion are demonstrated. These results make the ECM-inspired hydrogel laden with ADSCs an ideal candidate for treating RA and other autoimmune disorders.

Regulating the microenvironment with nanomaterials: Potential strategies to ameliorate COVID-19

COVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2, has resulted in serious economic and health burdens. Current treatments remain inadequate to extinguish the epidemic, and efficient therapeutic approaches for COVID-19 are urgently being sought. Interestingly, accumulating evidence suggests that microenvironmental disorder plays an important role in the progression of COVID-19 in patients. In addition, recent advances in nanomaterial technologies provide promising opportunities for alleviating the altered homeostasis induced by a viral infection, providing new insight into COVID-19 treatment. Most literature reviews focus only on certain aspects of microenvironment alterations and fail to provide a comprehensive overview of the changes in homeostasis in COVID-19 patients. To fill this gap, this review systematically discusses alterations of homeostasis in COVID-19 patients and potential mechanisms. Next, advances in nanotechnology-based strategies for promoting homeostasis restoration are summarized. Finally, we discuss the challenges and prospects of using nanomaterials for COVID-19 management. This review provides a new strategy and insights into treating COVID-19 and other diseases associated with microenvironment disorders.

Stimuli-Responsive Gene Delivery Nanocarriers for Cancer Therapy

Gene therapy provides a promising approach in treating cancers with high efficacy and selectivity and few adverse effects. Currently, the development of functional vectors with safety and effectiveness is the intense focus for improving the delivery of nucleic acid drugs for gene therapy. For this purpose, stimuli-responsive nanocarriers displayed strong potential in improving the overall efficiencies of gene therapy and reducing adverse effects via effective protection, prolonged blood circulation, specific tumor accumulation, and controlled release profile of nucleic acid drugs. Besides, synergistic therapy could be achieved when combined with other therapeutic regimens. This review summarizes recent advances in various stimuli-responsive nanocarriers for gene delivery. Particularly, the nanocarriers responding to endogenous stimuli including pH, reactive oxygen species, glutathione, and enzyme, etc., and exogenous stimuli including light, thermo, ultrasound, magnetic field, etc., are introduced. Finally, the future challenges and prospects of stimuli-responsive gene delivery nanocarriers toward potential clinical translation are well discussed. The major objective of this review is to present the biomedical potential of stimuli-responsive gene delivery nanocarriers for cancer therapy and provide guidance for developing novel nanoplatforms that are clinically applicable.

Thermal immuno-nanomedicine in cancer

Immunotherapy has revolutionized the treatment of patients with cancer. However, promoting antitumour immunity in patients with tumours that are resistant to these therapies remains a challenge. Thermal therapies provide a promising immune-adjuvant strategy for use with immunotherapy, mostly owing to the capacity to reprogramme the tumour microenvironment through induction of immunogenic cell death, which also promotes the recruitment of endogenous immune cells. Thus, thermal immunotherapeutic strategies for various cancers are an area of considerable research interest. In this Review, we describe the role of the various thermal therapies and provide an update on attempts to combine these with immunotherapies in clinical trials. We also provide an overview of the preclinical development of various thermal immuno-nanomedicines, which are capable of combining thermal therapies with various immunotherapy strategies in a single therapeutic platform. Finally, we discuss the challenges associated with the clinical translation of thermal immuno-nanomedicines and emphasize the importance of multidisciplinary and inter-professional collaboration to facilitate the optimal translation of this technology from bench to bedside.

Ultrasound targeted microbubble destruction-triggered nitric oxide release via nanoscale ultrasound contrast agent for sensitizing chemoimmunotherapy

Immunotherapy had demonstrated inspiring effects in tumor treatment, but only a minority of people could benefit owing to the hypoxic and immune-suppressed tumor microenvironment (TME). Therefore, there was an urgent need for a strategy that could relieve hypoxia and increase infiltration of tumor lymphocytes simultaneously. In this study, a novel acidity-responsive nanoscale ultrasound contrast agent (L-Arg@PTX nanodroplets) was constructed to co-deliver paclitaxel (PTX) and L-arginine (L-Arg) using the homogenization/emulsification method. The L-Arg@PTX nanodroplets with uniform size of about 300 nm and high drug loading efficiency displayed good ultrasound diagnostic imaging capability, improved tumor aggregation and achieved ultrasound-triggered drug release, which could prevent the premature leakage of drugs and thus improve biosafety. More critically, L-Arg@PTX nanodroplets in combination with ultrasound targeted microbubble destruction (UTMD) could increase cellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), which exerted an oxidizing effect that converted L-Arg into nitric oxide (NO), thus alleviating hypoxia, sensitizing chemotherapy and increasing the CD8 + cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) infiltration. Combined with the chemotherapeutic drug PTX-induced immunogenic cell death (ICD), this promising strategy could enhance immunotherapy synergistically and realize powerful tumor treatment effect. Taken together, L-Arg@PTX nanodroplets was a very hopeful vehicle that integrated drug delivery, diagnostic imaging, and chemoimmunotherapy.

Curcumin-Based Nanomedicines in the Treatment of Inflammatory and Immunomodulated Diseases: An Evidence-Based Comprehensive Review

Curcumin (CUR) is a polyphenol extracted from the rhizome of Curcuma longa that possesses potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant potential. Despite CUR's numerous beneficial effects on human health, it has limitations, such as poor absorption. Nano-based drug delivery systems have recently been applied to improve CUR's solubility and bioavailability and potentialize its health effects. This review investigated the effects of different CUR-based nanomedicines on inflammatory and immunomodulated diseases. PUBMED, EMBASE, COCHRANE, and GOOGLE SCHOLAR databases were searched, and the Scale for Assessment of Narrative Review Articles (SANRA) was used for quality assessment and PRISMA guidelines. Overall, 66 studies were included comprising atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), multiple sclerosis (MS), Huntington's disease (HD), inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), psoriasis, liver fibrosis, epilepsy, and COVID-19. The available scientific studies show that there are many known nanoformulations with curcumin. They can be found in nanosuspensions, nanoparticles, nanoemulsions, solid lipid particles, nanocapsules, nanospheres, and liposomes. These formulations can improve CUR bioavailability and can effectively be used as adjuvants in several inflammatory and immune-mediated diseases such as atheroma plaque formation, RA, dementia, AD, PD, MS, IBD, psoriasis, epilepsy, COVID-19, and can be used as potent anti-fibrotic adjuvants in fibrotic liver disease.

NADPH Selective Depletion Nanomedicine-Mediated Radio-Immunometabolism Regulation for Strengthening Anti-PDL1 Therapy against TNBC

Anti-PD(L)1 immunotherapy recently arises as an effective treatment against triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) but is only applicable to a small portion of TNBC patients due to the low PD-L1 expression and the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). To address these challenges, a multifunctional "drug-like" copolymer that possesses the auto-changeable upper critical solution temperature and the capacity of scavenging reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) inside tumor cells is synthesized and employed to develop a hypoxia-targeted and BMS202 (small molecule antagonist of PD-1/PD-L1 interactions)-loaded nanomedicine (BMS202@HZP NPs), combining the anti-PD-L1 therapy and the low-dose radiotherapy (LDRT) against TNBC. In addition to the controlled release of BMS202 in the hypoxic TNBC, BMS202@HZP NPs benefit the LDRT by upregulating the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP, the primary cellular source for NADPH) of TME whereas scavenging the NADPH inside tumor cells. As a result, the BMS202@HZP NPs-mediated LDRT upregulate the PD-L1 expression of tumor to promote anti-PD-L1 therapy response while reprogramming the immunometabolism of TME to alleviate its immunosuppression. This innovative nanomedicine-mediated radio-immunometabolism regulation provides a promising strategy to reinforce the anti-PD-L1 therapy against TNBC.

3D-CEUS tracking of injectable chemo-sonodynamic therapy-enabled mop-up of residual renal cell carcinoma after thermal ablation

Thermal ablation (TA), as a minimally invasive therapeutic technique, has been extensively used to the treatment of solid tumors, such as renal cell carcinoma (RCC), which, unfortunately, still fails to overcome the high risk of local recurrence and distant metastasis since the incomplete ablation cannot be ignored due to various factors such as the indistinguishable tumor margins and limited ablation zone. Herein, we report the injectable thermosensitive hydrogel by confining curcumin (Cur)-loaded hollow mesoporous organosilica nanoparticles (Cur@HMON@gel) which can locate in tumor site more than half a month and mop up the residual RCC under ultrasound (US) irradiation after transforming from colloidal sol status to elastic gel matrix at physiological temperature. Based on the US-triggered accelerated diffusion of the model chemotherapy drug with multi-pharmacologic functions, the sustained and controlled release of Cur has been demonstrated in vitro. Significantly, US is employed as an external energy to trigger Cur, as a sonosensitizer also, to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) for sonodynamic tumor therapy (SDT) in parallel. Tracking by the three-dimensional contrast-enhanced ultrasound (3D-CEUS) imaging, the typical decreased blood perfusions have been observed since the residual xenograft tumor after incomplete TA were effectively suppressed during the chemo-sonodynamic therapy process. The high in vivo biocompatibility and biodegradability of the multifunctional nanoplatform confined by thermogel provide the potential of their further clinical translation for the solid tumor eradication under the guidance and monitoring of 3D-CEUS.

GE11 peptide-decorated acidity-responsive micelles for improved drug delivery and enhanced combination therapy of metastatic breast cancer

Nanotechnology-mediated drug delivery systems suffer from insufficient retention in tumor tissues and unreliable drug release at specific target sites. Herein, we developed an epidermal growth factor receptor-targeted multifunctional micellar nanoplatform (GE11-DOX+CEL-M) by encapsulating celecoxib into polymeric micelles based on the conjugate of GE11-poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(trimethylene carbonate) with doxorubicin to suppress tumor growth and metastasis. The polymeric micelles maintained stable nanostructures under physiological conditions but quickly disintegrated in a weakly acidic environment, which is conducive to controlled drug release. Importantly, GE11-DOX+CEL-M micelles effectively delivered the drug combination to tumor sites and enhanced tumor cell uptake through GE11-mediated active tumor targeting. Subsequently, GE11-DOX+CEL-M micelles dissociated in response to intracellular slightly acidic microenvironmental stimuli, resulting in rapid release of celecoxib and doxorubicin to synergistically inhibit the proliferation and migration of tumor cells. Systemic administration of GE11-DOX+CEL-M micelles into mice bearing subcutaneous 4T1 tumor models resulted in higher tumor growth suppression and decreased lung metastasis of tumor cells compared with micelles without GE11 decoration or delivering only doxorubicin. Furthermore, the micelles effectively reduced the systemic toxicity of the chemotherapy drugs. This nanotherapeutic system provides a promising strategy for safe and effective cancer therapy.

Nanobubble-based anti-hepatocellular carcinoma therapy combining immune check inhibitors and sonodynamic therapy

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide, posing a global threat to human healthcare, and current approved treatment strategies do not produce satisfactory outcomes. Here, nanobubbles (NBs) were prepared that carried Immune Check Inhibitors (ICIs), PD-L1 antibody (PD-L1 Ab) and sonodynamic agent CHLORIN E6 (Ce₆); the anti-cancer properties of these NBs were analyzed from the point of view of immune and sonodynamic therapies. The PD-L1 Ab/Ce₆-NBs could inhibit tumor growth through regulating reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, apoptosis, and most importantly, the function of associated immunocytes, including natural killer cells and lymphocytes. The tumor tissues highly expressed markers of immunogenic tumor cell death (ICD) in which the expression of calreticulin (CRT) and ICD-related immune cytokines (CD80, CD86, INF-γ, and IL-2) were increased in PD-L1 Ab/Ce₆-NB treated mice. PD-L1 Ab/Ce₆-NBs also promoted murine spleen lymphocyte proliferation and cytotoxic activity, as well as CD8+ T cell infiltration in the tumor tissues, and downregulation of the PD-L1 protein and mRNA expression. Furthermore, Bax expression was increased and Bcl-2 was inhibited at the mRNA and protein levels in a murine subcutaneous transplanted tumor model. These results indicate that PD-L1 Ab/Ce₆-NBs can induce ROS-dependent ICD to further boost anti-cancer immune responses under the action of targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 immune check point in the tumor microenvironment as a promising therapeutic agent for HCC.

Nanoparticles for Chemoimmunotherapy Against Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) exhibits high recurrence and mortality rates because of the lack of effective treatment targets. Surgery and traditional chemotherapy are the primary treatment options. Immunotherapy shows high potential for treating various cancers but exhibits limited efficacy against TNBC as a monotherapy. Chemoimmunotherapy has broad prospects for applications for cancer treatment conferred through the synergistic immunomodulatory and anti-tumor effects of chemotherapy and immunotherapeutic strategies. However, improving the efficacy of synergistic therapy and reducing the side effects of multiple drugs remain to be the main challenges in chemoimmunotherapy against TNBC. Nanocarriers can target both cancer and immune cells, promote drug accumulation, and show minimal toxicity, making them ideal delivery systems for chemotherapeutic and immunotherapeutic agents. In this review, we introduce the immunomodulatory effects of chemotherapy and combined mechanisms of chemoimmunotherapy, followed by a summary of nanoparticle-mediated chemoimmunotherapeutic strategies used for treating TNBC. This up-to-date synthesis of relevant findings in the field merits contemplation, while considering avenues of investigation to enable advances in the field.

Hierarchical Microparticles Delivering Oxaliplatin and NLG919 Nanoprodrugs for Local Chemo-immunotherapy

Chemo-immunotherapy shows promising antitumor therapeutic outcomes for many primary cancers. Research in this area has been focusing on developing an ideal formula that enables the potent efficacy of chemo-immunotherapy in combating various cancers with reduced systemic toxicity. Herein, we present novel hierarchical hydrogel microparticles (M_DDP) delivering oxaliplatin and NLG919 nanoprodrugs for local chemo-immunotherapy with desired features. The oxaliplatin prodrug and NLG919 were efficiently loaded in the dual-drug polymeric nanoparticles (DDP NPs), which were further encapsulated into a M_DDP by using microfluidic technology. When delivered to the tumor site, the DDP NPs will be sustainedly released from the M_DDP and retained locally to reduce systemic toxicity. After being endocytosed by cancer cells, the cytotoxic oxaliplatin and NLG919 could be successfully triggered to release from DDP NPs in a chain-shattering manner, leading to the immunogenic cell death (ICD) of tumor cells and the suppression of intratumoral immunosuppressive Tregs, respectively. With the assistance of an immune modulator, the chemotherapeutics-induced ICD could trigger robust systemic antitumor immune responses, presenting superior synergistic antitumor efficacies. Thus, the hierarchical microparticles could substantially inhibit the growth of mouse subcutaneous colorectal tumors, breast tumors, and colorectal tumors with large initial sizes via synergized chemo-immunotherapy, showing great potential in the practical clinical application of oncotherapy.

Combining immune checkpoint blockade with ATP-based immunogenic cell death amplifier for cancer chemo-immunotherapy

Amplifying "eat me signal" during tumor immunogenic cell death (ICD) cascade is crucial for tumor immunotherapy. Inspired by the indispensable role of adenosine triphosphate (ATP, a necessary "eat me signal" for ICD), a versatile ICD amplifier was developed for chemotherapy-sensitized immunotherapy. Doxorubicin (DOX), ATP and ferrous ions (Fe²⁺) were co-assembled into nanosized amplifier (ADO-Fe) through π‒π stacking and coordination effect. Meanwhile, phenylboric acid-polyethylene glycol-phenylboric acid (PBA-PEG-PBA) was modified on the surface of ADO-Fe (denoted as PADO-Fe) by the virtue of d-ribose unit of ATP. PADO-Fe could display active targetability against tumor cells via sialic acid/PBA interaction. In acidic microenvironment, PBA-PEG-PBA would dissociate from amplifier. Moreover, high H₂O₂ concentration would induce hydroxyl radical (·OH) and oxygen (O₂) generation through Fenton reaction by Fe²⁺. DOX and ATP would be released from the amplifier, which could induce ICD effect and "ICD adjuvant" to amplify this process. Together with programmed death ligands 1 (PD-L1) checkpoint blockade immunotherapy, PADO-Fe could not only activate immune response against primary tumor, but also strong abscopal effect against distant tumor. Our simple and multifunctional ICD amplifier opens a new window for enhancing ICD effect and immune checkpoint blockade therapy.

NIR/MRI-Guided Oxygen-Independent Carrier-Free Anti-Tumor Nano-Theranostics

Imaging-guided photothermal therapy (PTT)/photodynamic therapy (PDT) for cancer treatment are beneficial for precise localization of the malignant lesions and combination of multiple cell killing mechanisms in eradicating stubborn thermal-resistant cancer cells. However, overcoming the adverse impact of tumor hypoxia on PDT efficacy remains a challenge. Here, carrier-free nano-theranostic agents are developed (AIBME@IR780-APM NPs) for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-guided synergistic PTT/thermodynamic therapy (TDT). Two IR780 derivatives are synthesized as the subject of nanomedicine to confer the advantages for the nanomedicine, which are by feat of amphiphilic IR780-PEG to enhance the sterical stability and reduce the risk from reticuloendothelial system uptake, and IR780-ATU to chelate Mn²⁺ for T₁ -weighted MRI. Dimethyl 2,2'-azobis(2-methylpropionate) (AIBME), acting as thermally decomposable radical initiators, are further introduced into nanosystems with the purpose of generating highly cytotoxic alkyl radicals upon PTT launched by IR780 under 808 nm laser irradiation. Therefore, the sequentially generated heat and alkyl radicals synergistically induce cell death via synergistic PTT/TDT, ignoring tumor hypoxia. Moreover, these carrier-free nano-theranostic agents present satisfactory biocompatibility, which could be employed as a powerful weapon to hit hypoxic tumors via MRI-guided oxygen-independent PTT and photonic TDT.

Co-Delivery of Doxorubicin and Anti-PD-L1 Peptide in Lipid/PLGA Nanocomplexes for the Chemo-Immunotherapy of Cancer

The combined delivery of chemotherapeutics with checkpoint inhibitors of the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway provides a new approach for cancer treatment. Small-molecule peptide inhibitors possess short production cycle, low immunogenicity, and fewer side effects; however, their potential in cancer therapy is hampered by the rapid biodegradation and a nanocarrier is needed for efficient drug delivery. Herein, anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX) and PD-L1 inhibitor peptide P-12 are co-loaded by a lipid polymer nanocomplex based on poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and DSPE-PEG. Octaarginine (R8)-conjugated DSPE-PEG renders the LPN efficient internalization by cancer cells. The optimal nanomedicine LPN-30-R8^2K@DP shows a diameter of 125 nm and a DOX and P-12 loading content of 5.0 and 6.2%, respectively. LPN-30-R8^2K@DP exhibits good physiological stability and enhanced cellular uptake by cancer cells. It successfully induces immunogenic cell death and PD-L1 blockade in CT26 cancer cells. The in vivo antitumor study further suggests that co-loaded nanomedicine efficiently suppresses CT26 tumor growth and elicits antitumor immune response. This study manifests that lipid polymer nanocomplexes are promising drug carriers for the efficient chemo-immunotherapy of cancer.

Engineered extracellular vesicles and their mimetics for cancer immunotherapy

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are heterogeneous membranous vesicles secreted by living cells that are involved in many physiological and pathological processes as intermediaries for intercellular communication and molecular transfer. Recent studies have shown that EVs can regulate the occurrence and development of tumors by transferring proteins, lipids and nucleic acids to immune cells as signaling molecules. As a new diagnostic biomarker and drug delivery system, EVs have broad application prospects in immunotherapy. In addition, the breakthrough of nanotechnology has promoted the development and exploration of engineered EVs for immune-targeted therapy. Herein, we review the uniqueness of EVs in immune regulation and the engineering strategies used for immunotherapy and highlight the logic of their design through typical examples. The present situation and challenges of clinical transformation are discussed, and the development prospects of EVs in immunotherapy are proposed. The goal of this review is to provide new insights into the design of immune-regulatory EVs and expand their application in cancer immunotherapy.

Lung Cancer Targeted Chemoradiotherapy via Dual-Stimuli Responsive Biodegradable Core-Shell Nanoparticles

Lung cancer is one of the major causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide, primarily because of the limitations of conventional clinical therapies such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Side effects associated with these treatments have made it essential for new modalities, such as tumor targeting nanoparticles that can provide cancer specific therapies. In this research, we have developed novel dual-stimuli nanoparticles (E-DSNPs), comprised of two parts; (1) Core: responsive to glutathione as stimuli and encapsulating Cisplatin (a chemo-drug), and (2) Shell: responsive to irradiation as stimuli and containing NU7441 (a radiation sensitizer). The targeting moieties on these nanoparticles are Ephrin transmembrane receptors A2 (EphA2) that are highly expressed on the surfaces of lung cancer cells. These nanoparticles were then evaluated for their enhanced targeting and therapeutic efficiency against lung cancer cell lines. E-DSNPs displayed very high uptake by lung cancer cells compared to healthy lung epithelial cells. These nanoparticles also demonstrated a triggered release of both drugs against respective stimuli and a subsequent reduction in in vitro cancer cell survival fraction compared to free drugs of equivalent concentration (survival fraction of about 0.019 and 0.19, respectively). Thus, these nanoparticles could potentially pave the path to targeted cancer therapy, while overcoming the side effects of conventional clinical therapies.

Highly sensitive Curcumin-conjugated nanotheranostic platform for detecting amyloid-beta plaques by magnetic resonance imaging and reversing cognitive deficits of Alzheimer's disease via NLRP3-inhibition

BACKGROUND

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder without effective therapy and lack diagnosis strategy for preclinical AD patients. There is an urgent need for development of both early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention of AD.

RESULTS

Herein, we developed a nanotheranostics platform consisting of Curcumin (Cur), an anti-inflammatory molecule, and superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles encapsulated by diblock 1,2-dio-leoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-n-[poly(ethylene glycol)] (DSPE-PEG) that are modified with CRT and QSH peptides on its surface. Furthermore, we demonstrated that this multifunctional nanomaterial efficiently reduced β-amyloid plaque burden specifically in APP/PS1 transgenic mice, with the process noninvasively detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the two-dimensional MRI images were computed into three-dimension (3D) plot. Our data demonstrated highly sensitive in vivo detection of β-amyloid plaques which more closely revealed real deposition of Aβ than previously reported and we quantified the volumes of plaques for the first time based on 3D plot. In addition, memory deficits of the mice were significantly rescued, probably related to inhibition of NLR Family Pyrin Domain Containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasomes.

CONCLUSIONS

Gathered data demonstrated that this theranostic platform may have both early diagnostic and therapeutic potential in AD.

Tumor microenvironment-responsive nanohybrid for hypoxia amelioration with photodynamic and near-infrared II photothermal combination therapy

Phototherapy, particularly photothermal therapy (PTT) and photodynamic therapy (PDT), has been widely investigated for tumor treatment. However, the limited tissue penetration depth of light in the near-infrared I (NIR-I) region and the hypoxic tumor microenvironment (TME) severely constrain their clinical applications. To address these challenges, in the present study, we developed a chlorin e6 (Ce6) and MnO₂-coloaded, hyaluronic acid (HA)-coated single-walled carbon nanohorns (SWNHs) nanohybrid (HA-Ce6-MnO₂@SWNHs) for PDT and PTT combination therapy of tumor. HA-Ce6-MnO₂@SWNHs responded to the mild acidic TME to ameliorate tumor hypoxia, thus enhancing tumor PDT. Moreover, HA-Ce6-MnO₂@SWNHs had a high photothermal conversion efficiency at 1064 nm (55.48%), which enabled deep tissue penetration (3.05 cm) and allowed for highly efficient tumor PTT in near-infrared II (NIR-II) window. PDT and PTT combination therapy with HA-Ce6-MnO₂@SWNHs achieved a good therapeutic efficacy on 4T1 tumor-bearing mice, eradicating the primary tumors and suppressing cancer recurrence. Our study provides a promising strategy for developing a hypoxia relief and deep tissue penetration phototherapy platform by using SWNHs for highly effective tumor PDT and NIR-II PTT combination therapy. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: The hypoxic tumor microenvironment (TME) and the limited penetration of the NIR-I light in biological tissues compromise the efficacy of photothermal therapy (PTT) and photodynamic therapy (PDT) on tumors. Here, we developed a chlorin e6 (Ce6) and MnO₂-coloaded, hyaluronic acid (HA)-coated single-walled carbon nanohorns (SWNHs) nanohybrid (HA-Ce6-MnO₂@SWNHs) for PDT and PTT combination therapy of tumors. The nanohybrid could efficiently accumulate in tumors through CD44-mediated active targeting. The sequential MnO₂-enhanced PDT and efficient NIR-II PTT had a remarkable therapeutic effect by eliminating the primary tumor and simultaneously inhibiting tumor recurrence.

Curcumenol triggered ferroptosis in lung cancer cells via lncRNA H19/miR-19b-3p/FTH1 axis

Curcumenol, an effective ingredient of Wenyujin, has been reported that exerted its antitumor potential in a few cancer types. However, the effect and molecular mechanism of curcumenol in lung cancer are largely unknown. Here, we found that curcumenol induced cell death and suppressed cell proliferation in lung cancer cells. Next, we demonstrated that ferroptosis was the predominant method that contributed to curcumenol-induced cell death of lung cancer in vitro and vivo for the first time. Subsequently, using RNA sequencing, we found that the long non-coding RNA H19 (lncRNA H19) was significantly downregulated in lung cancer cells treated with curcumenol, when compared to untreated controls. Overexpression of lncRNA H19 eliminated the anticancer effect of curcumenol, while lncRNA H19 knockdown promoted ferroptosis induced by curcumenol treatment. Mechanistically, we showed that lncRNA H19 functioned as a competing endogenous RNA to bind to miR-19b-3p, thereby enhanced the transcription activity of its endogenous target, ferritin heavy chain 1 (FTH1), a marker of ferroptosis. In conclusion, our data show that the natural product curcumenol exerted its antitumor effects on lung cancer by triggering ferroptosis, and the lncRNA H19/miR-19b-3p/FTH1 axis plays an essential role in curcumenol-induced ferroptotic cell death. Therefore, our findings will hopefully provide a valuable drug for treating lung cancer patients.

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Curcumenol exhibited its anticancer activity by triggering ferroptosis both in vitro and in vivo.

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Loss of lncRNA H19 leads to ferroptotic cell death in lung cancer.

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LncRNA H19 plays an important role in curcumenol-induced ferroptotic cell death in lung cancer.

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Curcumenol induced ferroptosis through a ceRNA network based on lncRNA H19/miR-19b-3p/FTH1 axis.

Glucose-Activated Nanoconfinement Supramolecular Cascade Reaction in Situ for Diabetic Wound Healing

Supramolecular nanofunctional materials have attracted increasing attention from scientific researchers due to their advantages in biomedicine. Herein, we construct a nanosupramolecular cascade reactor through the cooperative interaction of multiple noncovalent bonds, which include chitosan, sulfobutylether-β-cyclodextrin, ferrous ions, and glucose oxidase. Under the activation of glucose, hydroxyl radicals generated from the nanoconfinement supramolecular cascade reaction process are able to initiate the radical polymerization process of vinyl monomers to form hydrogel network structures while inhibiting resistant bacterial infection. The results of the diabetic wound experiment confirmed the capacity of the glucose-activated nanoconfinement supramolecular cascade reaction in situ for potent antimicrobial efficacy and wound protection. This strategy of "two birds with one stone" provides a convenient method for the application of supramolecular nanomaterial in the field of biomedicine.

Watson-Crick Base Pairing-Inspired Laser/GSH Activatable miRNA-Coordination Polymer Nanoplexes for Combined Cancer Chemo-Immuno-Photothermal Therapy

The tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment (TIM) greatly hindered the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy. Overexpressed indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase-1 (IDO1) in tumor tissues plays a vital role in TIM generation, and downregulation of IDO1 expression may reverse TIM. Inspired by the Watson-Crick base-pairing rule, a versatile noncationic miRNA vector (miDAC@PDA) is developed for cancer immunotherapy. Doxorubicin (DOX), adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and copper ions (Cu²⁺) are coassembled into coordination polymer nanoparticles (DAC) and bind miRNA via the hydrogen bond interaction (miDAC) between adenine residues (ATP) and uracil residues (miRNA). Polydopamine (PDA) is deposited onto the surface of miDAC for photothermal therapy. miDAC@PDA can efficiently accumulate into tumor tissues for cellular uptake. Under laser irradiation and high intracellular GSH levels, the PDA shell of miDAC@PDA can dissociate from miDAC for miRNA release due to local hyperthermia. Cu²⁺-mediated GSH consumption and intracellular ATP release can amplify the DOX-based immunogenic cell death (ICD) cascade, together with miR-448-mediated IDO1 inhibition, and these versatile nanoplexes will not only restrain primary tumor growth but also display a remarkable abscopal effect on distant tumors. Collectively, our study provides a unique strategy for intracellular gene delivery and an inspirational approach for multimechanism cancer management.

A ROS-responsive synergistic delivery system for combined immunotherapy and chemotherapy

Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies that target programmed cell death-1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) pathway are currently used for the treatment of various cancer types. However, low response rates of ICB remain the major issue and limit their applications in clinic. Here, we developed a ROS-responsive synergistic delivery system (pep-PAPM@PTX) by integrating physically-encapsulated paclitaxel (PTX) and surface-modified anti-PD-L1 peptide (pep) for combined chemotherapy and ICB therapy. Pep-PAPM@PTX could bind the cell surface PD-L1 and drive its recycling to lysosomal degradation, thus reverting PTX-induced PD-L1 upregulation and downregulating PD-L1 expression. As a result, pep-PAPM@PTX significantly promoted T cell infiltration and increased tumor immunoactivating factors, synergizing PTX chemotherapy to achieve enhanced anticancer potency in a triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) model.

Engineering single-atom catalysts toward biomedical applications

Due to inherent structural defects, common nanocatalysts always display limited catalytic activity and selectivity, making it practically difficult for them to replace natural enzymes in a broad scope of biologically important applications. By decreasing the size of the nanocatalysts, their catalytic activity and selectivity will be substantially improved. Guided by this concept, the advances of nanocatalysts now enter an era of atomic-level precise control. Single-atom catalysts (denoted as SACs), characterized by atomically dispersed active sites, strikingly show utmost atomic utilization, precisely located metal centers, unique metal-support interactions and identical coordination environments. Such advantages of SACs drastically boost the specific activity per metal atom, and thus provide great potential for achieving superior catalytic activity and selectivity to functionally mimic or even outperform natural enzymes of interest. Although the size of the catalysts does matter, it is not clear whether the guideline of "the smaller, the better" is still correct for developing catalysts at the single-atom scale. Thus, it is clearly a new, urgent issue to address before further extending SACs into biomedical applications, representing an important branch of nanomedicine. This review begins by providing an overview of recent advances of synthesis strategies of SACs, which serve as a basis for the discussion of emerging achievements in improving the enzyme-like catalytic properties at an atomic level. Then, we carefully compare the structures and functions of catalysts at various scales from nanoparticles, nanoclusters, and few-atom clusters to single atoms. Contrary to conventional wisdom, SACs are not the most catalytically active catalysts in specific reactions, especially those requiring multi-site auxiliary activities. After that, we highlight the unique roles of SACs toward biomedical applications. To appreciate these advances, the challenges and prospects in rapidly growing studies of SACs-related catalytic nanomedicine are also discussed in this review.

Boosting Cancer Immunotherapy via the Convenient A2AR Inhibition Using a Tunable Nanocatalyst with Light-Enhanced Activity

Blockade of A2A adenosine receptors (A2AR)-adenosinergic signaling shows high potency to mobilize antitumor immunity for its in-depth involvement in immune regulation of nearly all immune cells. Available A2AR inhibition strategies are mainly based on small molecules or proteins inhibitors, yet are limited by the non-specific operation as well as the off-target toxicity. Herein, the first effort to design a convenient tumor-specific A2AR inhibition strategy to improve antitumor immune responses via the spatiotemporally controlled oxygen supply by virtue of a versatile photo-modulated nanoreactor is reported on. This nanoreactor, consisting of a catalase-mimicking shell (Pt nanocatalyst) and a photothermal core (polydopamine), is rationally designed for achieving the near-infrared radiation (NIR)-guided/accelerated oxygen supplementation on tumor site, and for relieving the A2AR-mediated immunosuppression without toxicity concern. Meanwhile, the NIR light could also mediate the direct photothermal ablation of tumor, and elicit immunogenic cell deaths to boost antitumor immunity. In a poorly immunogenic breast cancer model, the intravenous injection of the nanoreactor leads to the improved immune response with an increased animal survival rate, and achieves the long-term immunological memory effect against tumor recurrence as well as rechallenge. This convenient nanoreactor-stimulated A2AR inhibition approach provides a versatile promising paradigm for improving these existing immunotherapies.

Binary regulation of the tumor microenvironment by a pH-responsive reversible shielding nanoplatform for improved tumor chemo-immunotherapy

The limited infiltration of specific T cells in an immunosuppressive microenvironment is a major challenge for cancer immunotherapy. Reversing tumor microenvironment and inducing an antitumor immune response are crucial for cancer therapy. Here, phenylboronic acid (PBA) derivative-stabilized ultrasmall platinum nanoparticles (PBA-Pt) and dextran-coated BLZ-945 nanoparticles (DNPs) were co-assembled through a pH-responsive borate ester bond to construct a versatile reversible shielding multifunctional nanoplatform (Pt@DNPs) for the first time. Pt@DNPs dissociated into two individual components, namely PBA-Pt and DNPs, in the tumor acid microenvironment. Both in vitro and in vivo studies revealed that Pt@DNPs induced immunogenic cell death (ICD) (through multimechanisms involving Pt^Ⅱ release and a multienzyme catalytic process by PBA-Pt) and relieved immunosuppressive microenvironment (depletion of tumor-associated macrophages by BLZ-945), which led to tumor-associated antigen release, maturation of dendritic cells, and infiltration of cytotoxic T cells for efficient antitumor immune response against both primary tumor and pulmonary metastatic tumor nodules. Therefore, Pt@DNPs is a promising option for cancer chemo-immunotherapy. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: A versatile reversible shielding multifunctional nanoplatform (Pt@DNPs) was engineered for the first time for combinational cancer chemo-immunotherapy. Multimechanisms involving induction of immunogenic cell death by PBA-Pt and sufficient TAM depletion by DNPs could efficiently relieve tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment and activate the antitumor immune response. The synergistic effect not only increased the infiltration of specific T cells in primary tumor, but it also induced a strong immune response against pulmonary metastatic nodules. Collectively, this nanoplatform may represent a promising strategy for combinational chemo-immunotherapy for cancers.

Emerging porous organic polymers for biomedical applications

This review summarizes and discusses the recent progress in porous organic polymers for diverse biomedical applications such as drug delivery, biomacromolecule immobilization, phototherapy, biosensing, bioimaging, and antibacterial applications.

Remodeling immune microenvironment in periodontitis using resveratrol liposomes as an antibiotic-free therapeutic strategy

BACKGROUND

Periodontitis is a complicated inflammatory disease that damages the tooth-supporting tissues, with limited pharmacotherapy available. Macrophage-targeting therapy is promising for inflammatory diseases. Resveratrol (RSV), a nonflavonoid polyphenol, is known for its anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. However, its medical application is limited by its poor stability and water-solubility, as well as its low bioavailability.

RESULT

A therapeutic resveratrol-loaded liposomal system (Lipo-RSV) was developed to treat periodontitis. The physical properties of Lipo-RSV and its ability to regulate macrophages were investigated. The results showed that Lipo-RSV had good biocompatibility and could re-educate the inflammatory macrophages from M1- to M2-like phenotype through activating p-STAT3 and downregulating p-STAT1. Besides, the Lipo-RSV could scavenge ROS and inhibit the NF-κB signal and inflammasomes, thereby reducing the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α.

CONCLUSION

These results revealed that Lipo-RSV could be a potential therapeutic system for the antibiotic-free treatment for periodontal diseases.

A thermoreversible antibacterial zeolite-based nanoparticles loaded hydrogel promotes diabetic wound healing via detrimental factor neutralization and ROS scavenging

BACKGROUND

As recovery time of diabetic wound injury is prolonged by the production of detrimental factors, including reactive oxygen species (ROS) and inflammatory cytokines, attenuating the oxidative stress and inflammatory reactions in the microenvironment of the diabetic wound site would be significant.

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN

In our study, we prepared thermoreversible, antibacterial zeolite-based nanoparticles loaded hydrogel to promote diabetic wound healing via the neutralization of detrimental factors such as inflammatory cytokines and ROS.

RESULTS

The cerium (Ce)-doped biotype Linde type A (LTA) zeolite nanoparticles synergistically eliminated mitochondrial ROS and neutralized free inflammatory factors, thus remodeling the anti-inflammatory microenvironment of the wound and enhancing angiogenesis. Moreover, the thermoreversible hydrogel composed of Pluronic F127 and chitosan demonstrated strong haemostatic and bactericidal behavior.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, the obtained thermoreversible, antibacterial, zeolite-based nanoparticles loaded hydrogels represent a multi-targeted combination therapy for diabetic wound healing.

Artificial intelligence-powered microfluidics for nanomedicine and materials synthesis

Artificial intelligence (AI) is an emerging technology with great potential, and its robust calculation and analysis capabilities are unmatched by traditional calculation tools. With the promotion of deep learning and open-source platforms, the threshold of AI has also become lower. Combining artificial intelligence with traditional fields to create new fields of high research and application value has become a trend. AI has been involved in many disciplines, such as medicine, materials, energy, and economics. The development of AI requires the support of many kinds of data, and microfluidic systems can often mine object data on a large scale to support AI. Due to the excellent synergy between the two technologies, excellent research results have emerged in many fields. In this review, we briefly review AI and microfluidics and introduce some applications of their combination, mainly in nanomedicine and material synthesis. Finally, we discuss the development trend of the combination of the two technologies.

Tea polyphenol modified, photothermal responsive and ROS generative black phosphorus quantum dots as nanoplatforms for promoting MRSA infected wounds healing in diabetic rats

BACKGROUND

Healing of MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) infected deep burn wounds (MIDBW) in diabetic patients remains an obstacle but is a cutting-edge research problem in clinical science. Surgical debridement and continuous antibiotic use remain the primary clinical treatment for MIDBW. However, suboptimal pharmacokinetics and high doses of antibiotics often cause serious side effects such as fatal complications of drug-resistant bacterial infections. MRSA, which causes wound infection, is currently a bacterium of concern in diabetic wound healing. In more severe cases, it can even lead to amputation of the patient's limb. The development of bioactive nanomaterials that can promote infected wound healing is significant.

RESULTS

The present work proposed a strategy of using EGCG (Epigallocatechin gallate) modified black phosphorus quantum dots (BPQDs) as therapeutic nanoplatforms for MIDBW to achieve the synergistic functions of NIR (near-infrared)-response, ROS-generation, sterilization, and promoting wound healing. The electron spin resonance results revealed that EGCG-BPQDs@H had a more vital photocatalytic ability to produce singlet oxygen than BPQDs@H. The inhibition results indicated an effective bactericidal rate of 88.6% against MRSA. Molecular biology analysis demonstrated that EGCG-BPQDs significantly upregulated CD31 nearly fourfold and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) nearly twofold, which were beneficial for promoting the proliferation of vascular endothelial cells and skin epidermal cells. Under NIR irradiation, EGCG-BPQDs hydrogel (EGCG-BPQDs@H) treated MIDBW area could rapidly raise temperature up to 55 °C for sterilization. The MIBDW closure rate of rats after 21 days of treatment was 92.4%, much better than that of 61.1% of the control group. The engineered EGCG-BPQDs@H were found to promote MIDBW healing by triggering the PI3K/AKT and ERK1/2 signaling pathways, which could enhance cell proliferation and differentiation. In addition, intravenous circulation experiment showed good biocompatibility of EGCG-BPQDs@H. No significant damage to major organs was observed in rats.

CONCLUSIONS

The obtained results demonstrated that EGCG-BPQDs@H achieved the synergistic functions of photocatalytic property, photothermal effects and promoted wound healing, and are promising multifunctional nanoplatforms for MIDBW healing in diabetics.

Antitumor Activity of Nanoparticles Loaded with PHT-427, a Novel AKT/PDK1 Inhibitor, for the Treatment of Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Currently, new treatments are required to supplement the current standard of care for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The phosphatidylinositol3-kinase (PI3K) signaling pathway is commonly altered and activated in HNSCC. PHT-427 is a dual PI3K-mammalian target of the AKT/PDK1 inhibitor; however, to the best of our knowledge, the effect of the PHT-427 inhibitor on HNSCC has not been investigated. This study aims to evaluate the antitumoral effect of PHT-427-loaded polymeric nanoparticles based on α-tocopheryl succinate (α-TOS). The in vitro activity of PHT-427 was tested in hypopharynx carcinoma squamous cells (FaDu) to measure the cell viability, PI3KCA/AKT/PDK1 gene expression, and PI3KCA/AKT/PDK1 levels. Apoptosis, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were also measured. The presence of PHT-427 significantly enhances its antiproliferative and proapoptotic activity by inactivating the PI3K/AKT/PDK1 pathway. Nanoparticles (NPs) effectively suppress AKT/PDK1 expression. Additionally, NPs loaded with PHT-427 produce high oxidative stress levels that induce apoptosis. In conclusion, these results are promising in the use of this nanoformulation as a PHT-427 delivery system for effective HNSCC treatment.

A non-printed integrated-circuit textile for wireless theranostics

While the printed circuit board (PCB) has been widely considered as the building block of integrated electronics, the world is switching to pursue new ways of merging integrated electronic circuits with textiles to create flexible and wearable devices. Herein, as an alternative for PCB, we described a non-printed integrated-circuit textile (NIT) for biomedical and theranostic application via a weaving method. All the devices are built as fibers or interlaced nodes and woven into a deformable textile integrated circuit. Built on an electrochemical gating principle, the fiber-woven-type transistors exhibit superior bending or stretching robustness, and were woven as a textile logical computing module to distinguish different emergencies. A fiber-type sweat sensor was woven with strain and light sensors fibers for simultaneously monitoring body health and the environment. With a photo-rechargeable energy textile based on a detailed power consumption analysis, the woven circuit textile is completely self-powered and capable of both wireless biomedical monitoring and early warning. The NIT could be used as a 24/7 private AI "nurse" for routine healthcare, diabetes monitoring, or emergencies such as hypoglycemia, metabolic alkalosis, and even COVID-19 patient care, a potential future on-body AI hardware and possibly a forerunner to fabric-like computers.

Mitochondrial H2Sn-Mediated Anti-Inflammatory Theranostics

The insistent demand for space-controllable delivery, which reduces the side effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), has led to the development of a new theranostics-based approach for anti-inflammatory therapy. The current anti-inflammatory treatments can be improved by designing a drug delivery system responsive to the inflammatory site biomarker, hydrogen polysulfide (H₂S_n). Here, we report a novel theranostic agent 1 (TA1), consisting of three parts: H₂S_n-mediated triggering part, a two-photon fluorophore bearing mitochondria targeting unit (Rhodol-TPP), and anti-inflammatory COX inhibitor (indomethacin). In vitro experiments showed that TA1 selectively reacts with H₂S_n to concomitantly release both Rhodol-TPP and indomethacin. Confocal-microscopy imaging of inflammation-induced live cells suggested that TA1 is localized in the mitochondria where the H₂S_n is overexpressed. The TA1 reacted with H₂S_n in the endogenous and exogenous H₂S_n environments and in lipopolysaccharide treated inflammatory cells. Moreover, TA1 suppressed COX-2 level in the inflammatory-induced cells and prostaglandin E₂ (PGE₂) level in blood serum from inflammation-induced mouse models. In vivo experiments with inflammation-induced mouse models suggested that TA1 exhibits inflammation-site-elective drug release followed by significant therapeutic effects, showing its function as a theranostic agent, capable of both anti-inflammatory therapy and precise diagnosis. Theranostic behavior of TA1 is highly applicable in vivo model therapeutics for the inflammatory disease.

Recent progress in stimuli-responsive nanosystems for inducing immunogenic cell death

Low immunogenicity and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments are major hurdles in the application of cancer immunotherapy. To date, several immunogenic cell death (ICD) inducers have been reported to boost cancer immunotherapy by triggering ICD. ICD is characterized by the release of proinflammatory cytokines, danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) and tumor associated antigens which will generate anticancer immunity by triggering adaptive immune cells. However, application of ICD inducers is limited due to severe toxicity issues and inefficient localization in the tumor microenvironment. To circumvent these challenges, stimuli-responsive nanoparticles have been exploited for improving cancer immunotherapy by limiting its toxicity. The combination of stimuli-responsive nanoparticles with an ICD inducer serves as a promising strategy for increasing the clinical applications of ICD induction in cancer immunotherapy. Here, we outline recent advances in ICD mediated by stimuli-responsive nanoparticles that may be near-infrared (NIR)-responsive, pH-responsive, redox responsive, pH and enzyme responsive, or pH and redox responsive, and evaluate their significant potential for successful clinical translation in cancer immunotherapy.