Imaging of Hydroxyl-Radical Generation Using Dynamic Nuclear Polarization-Magnetic Resonance Imaging and a Spin-Trapping Agent

An innovative dual-organelle targeting NIR fluorescence probe for detecting hydroxyl radicals in biosystem and inflammation models

The hydroxyl radical (OH) is highly reactive and plays a significant role in a number of physiological and pathological processes within biosystems. Aberrant changes in the level of hydroxyl radical are associated with many disorders including tumor, inflammatory and cardiovascular diseases. Thus, detecting reactive oxygen species (ROS) in biological systems and imaging them is highly significant. In this work, a novel fluorescent probe (HR-DL) has been developed, targeting two organelles simultaneously. The probe is based on a coumarin-quinoline structure and exhibits high selectivity and sensitivity towards hydroxyl radicals (OH). When reacting with OH, the hydrogen abstraction process released its long-range π-conjugation and ICT processes, leading to a substantial red-shift in wavelength. This probe has the benefits of good water solubility (in its oxidative state), short response time (within 10 s), and unique dual lysosome/mitochondria targeting capabilities. It has been applied for sensing OH in biosystem and inflammation mice models.

Detecting biomarkers by dynamic nuclear polarization enhanced magnetic resonance

Hyperpolarization stands out as a technique capable of significantly enhancing the sensitivity of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP), among various hyperpolarization methods, has gained prominence for its efficacy in real-time monitoring of metabolism and physiology. By administering a hyperpolarized substrate through dissolution DNP (dDNP), the biodistribution and metabolic changes of the DNP agent can be visualized spatiotemporally. This approach proves to be a distinctive and invaluable tool for non-invasively studying cellular metabolism in vivo, particularly in animal models. Biomarkers play a pivotal role in influencing the growth and metastasis of tumor cells by closely interacting with them, and accordingly detecting pathological alterations of these biomarkers is crucial for disease diagnosis and therapy. In recent years, a range of hyperpolarized DNP molecular bioresponsive agents utilizing various nuclei, such as 13C, 15N, 31P, 89Y, etc., have been developed. In this context, we explore how these magnetic resonance signals of nuclear spins enhanced by DNP respond to biomarkers, including pH, metal ions, enzymes, or redox processes. This review aims to offer insights into the design principles of responsive DNP agents, target selection, and the mechanisms of action for imaging. Such discussions aim to propel the future development and application of DNP-based biomedical imaging agents.

A hollow Co3-xCuxS4 with glutathione depleting and photothermal properties for synergistic dual-enhanced chemodynamic/photothermal cancer therapy

Chemodynamic therapy has become an emerging cancer treatment strategy, in which tumor cells are killed through toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS), especially hydroxyl radicals (˙OH) produced by the Fenton reaction. Nevertheless, low ROS generation efficiency and ROS depletion by cellular antioxidant systems are still the main obstacles in chemodynamic therapy. In the present work, we propose a dually enhanced chemodynamic therapy obtained by inhibiting ˙OH consumption and promoting ˙OH production based on the administration of bimetallic sulfide Co_3-xCu_xS₄ nanoparticles functionalized by polyethylene glycol. These bimetallic nanoparticles display glutathione depleting and photothermal properties. The nanoparticles are gradually degraded in a tumor microenvironment, resulting in Co²⁺ and Cu²⁺ release. The released Co²⁺ triggers a Fenton-like reaction that turns endogenous hydrogen peroxide into highly toxic ˙OH. In the cellular environment, Cu²⁺ ions are reduced to Cu⁺ by endogenous GSH, which decreases the intracellular antioxidant capacity and additionally up-regulates ˙OH production via the Cu⁺-induced Fenton-like reaction. Moreover, under near-infrared light irradiation, the bimetallic nanoparticles display a photothermal conversion efficacy of 46.7%, which not only improves chemodynamic therapy via boosting a Fenton-like reaction but results in photothermal therapy through hyperthermia. Both in vitro cancer cell killing and in vivo tumor ablation experiments show that the bimetallic nanoparticles display outstanding therapeutic efficacy and negligible systemic toxicity, indicating their anticancer potential.

Hypoxia Imaging As a Guide for Hypoxia-Modulated and Hypoxia-Activated Therapy

Significance: Oxygen imaging techniques, which can probe the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of tumor oxygenation, could be of significant clinical utility in radiation treatment planning and in evaluating the effectiveness of hypoxia-activated prodrugs. To fulfill these goals, oxygen imaging techniques should be noninvasive, quantitative, and capable of serial imaging, as well as having sufficient temporal resolution to detect the dynamics of tumor oxygenation to distinguish regions of chronic and acute hypoxia. Recent Advances: No current technique meets all these requirements, although all have strengths in certain areas. The current status of positron emission tomography (PET)-based hypoxia imaging, oxygen-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), 19F MRI, and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) oximetry are reviewed along with their strengths and weaknesses for planning hypoxia-guided, intensity-modulated radiation therapy and detecting treatment response for hypoxia-targeted prodrugs. Critical Issues: Spatial and temporal resolution emerges as a major concern for these areas along with specificity and quantitative response. Although multiple oxygen imaging techniques have reached the investigative stage, clinical trials to test the therapeutic effectiveness of hypoxia imaging have been limited. Future Directions: Imaging elements of the redox environment besides oxygen by EPR and hyperpolarized MRI may have a significant impact on our understanding of the basic biology of the reactive oxygen species response and may extend treatment possibilities.

A Water-Dispersible Carboxylated Carbon Nitride Nanoparticles-Based Electrochemical Platform for Direct Reporting of Hydroxyl Radical in Meat

In this paper, carboxylated carbon nitride nanoparticles (carboxylated-g-C₃N₄ NPs) were prepared through a one-step molten salts method. The synthesized material was characterized by transmission electron microscope (TEM), Fourier transform-infrared spectra (FTIR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), etc. An electrochemical sensor based on single-stranded oligonucleotide/carboxylated-g-C₃N₄/chitosan/glassy carbon electrode (ssDNA/carboxylated-g-C₃N₄/chitosan/GCE) was constructed for determination of the hydroxyl radical (^•OH), and methylene blue (MB) was used as a signal molecule. The sensor showed a suitable electrochemical response toward ^•OH from 4.06 to 122.79 fM with a detection limit of 1.35 fM. The selectivity, reproducibility, and stability were also presented. Application of the sensor to real meat samples (i.e., pork, chicken, shrimp, and sausage) was performed, and the results indicated the proposed method could be used to detect ^•OH in practical samples. The proposed sensor holds a great promise to be applied in the fields of food safety.

Real-Time insight into in vivo redox status utilizing hyperpolarized [1-13C] N-acetyl cysteine

Drastic sensitivity enhancement of dynamic nuclear polarization is becoming an increasingly critical methodology to monitor real-time metabolic and physiological information in chemistry, biochemistry, and biomedicine. However, the limited number of available hyperpolarized ¹³C probes, which can effectively interrogate crucial metabolic activities, remains one of the major bottlenecks in this growing field. Here, we demonstrate [1-¹³C] N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) as a novel probe for hyperpolarized ¹³C MRI to monitor glutathione redox chemistry, which plays a central part of metabolic chemistry and strongly influences various therapies. NAC forms a disulfide bond in the presence of reduced glutathione, which generates a spectroscopically detectable product that is separated from the main peak by a 1.5 ppm shift. In vivo hyperpolarized MRI in mice revealed that NAC was broadly distributed throughout the body including the brain. Its biochemical transformation in two human pancreatic tumor cells in vitro and as xenografts differed depending on the individual cellular biochemical profile and microenvironment in vivo. Hyperpolarized NAC can be a promising non-invasive biomarker to monitor in vivo redox status and can be potentially translatable to clinical diagnosis.