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Haque A, Alenezi KM, Alsukaibi AKD, Al-Otaibi AA, Wong WY. Water-Soluble Small Organic Fluorophores for Oncological Theragnostic Applications: Progress and Development. Top Curr Chem (Cham) 2024; 382:14. [PMID: 38671325 DOI: 10.1007/s41061-024-00458-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Cancer is one of the major noncommunicable diseases, responsible for millions of deaths every year worldwide. Though various cancer detection and treatment modalities are available today, many deaths occur owing to its late-stage detection and metastatic nature. Noninvasive detection using luminescence-based imaging tools is considered one of the promising techniques owing to its low cost, high sensitivity, and brightness. Moreover, these tools are unique and valuable as they can detect even the slightest changes in the cellular microenvironment. To achieve this, a fluorescent probe with strong tumor uptake and high spatial and temporal resolution, especially with high water solubility, is highly demanded. Recently, several water-soluble molecules with emission windows in the visible (400-700 nm), first near-infrared (NIR-I, 700-1000 nm), and second near-infrared (NIR-II, 1000-1700 nm) windows have been reported in literature. This review highlights recently reported water-soluble small organic fluorophores/dyes with applications in cancer diagnosis and therapeutics. We systematically highlight and describe the key concepts, structural classes of fluorophores, strategies for imparting water solubility, and applications in cancer therapy and diagnosis, i.e., theragnostics. We discuss examples of water-soluble fluorescent probes based on coumarin, xanthene, boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY), and cyanine cores. Some other emerging classes of dyes based on carbocyclic and heterocyclic cores are also discussed. Besides, emerging molecular engineering methods to obtain such fluorophores are discussed. Finally, the opportunities and challenges in this research area are also delineated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashanul Haque
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Ha'il, 81451, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia.
- Medical and Diagnostic Research Centre, University of Ha'il, 55473, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Khalaf M Alenezi
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Ha'il, 81451, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia
- Medical and Diagnostic Research Centre, University of Ha'il, 55473, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdulmohsen Khalaf Dhahi Alsukaibi
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Ha'il, 81451, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia
- Medical and Diagnostic Research Centre, University of Ha'il, 55473, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ahmed A Al-Otaibi
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Ha'il, 81451, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia
- Medical and Diagnostic Research Centre, University of Ha'il, 55473, Ha'il, Saudi Arabia
| | - Wai-Yeung Wong
- Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, People's Republic of China.
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Kumar A, Goudar VS, Nahak BK, Tsai PH, Lin HW, Tseng FG. [Ru(dpp) 3 ]Cl 2 -Embedded Oxygen Nano Polymeric Sensors: A Promising Tool for Monitoring Intracellular and Intratumoral Oxygen Gradients with High Quantum Yield and Long Lifetime. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2023:e2307955. [PMID: 38148312 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202307955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Revised: 10/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023]
Abstract
Unraveling the intricacies between oxygen dynamics and cellular processes in the tumor microenvironment (TME) hinges upon precise monitoring of intracellular and intratumoral oxygen levels, which holds paramount significance. The majority of these reported oxygen nanoprobes suffer compromised lifetime and quantum yield when exposed to the robust ROS activities prevalent in TME, limiting their prolonged in vitro usability. Herein, the ruthenium-embedded oxygen nano polymeric sensor (Ru-ONPS) is proposed for precise oxygen gradient monitoring within the cellular environment and TME. Ru-ONPS (≈64±7 nm) incorporates [Ru(dpp)3 ]Cl2 dye into F-127 and crosslinks it with urea and paraformaldehyde, ensuring a prolonged lifetime (5.4 µs), high quantum yield (66.65 ± 2.43% in N2 and 49.80 ± 3.14% in O2 ), superior photostability (>30 min), and excellent stability in diverse environmental conditions. Based on the Stern-Volmer plot, the Ru-ONPS shows complete linearity for a wide dynamic range (0-23 mg L-1 ), with a detection limit of 10 µg mL-1 . Confocal imaging reveals Ru-ONPS cellular uptake and intratumoral distribution. After 72 h, HCT-8 cells show 5.20±1.03% oxygen levels, while NIH3T3 cells have 7.07±1.90%. Co-culture spheroids display declining oxygen levels of 17.90±0.88%, 10.90±0.88%, and 5.10±1.18%, at 48, 120, and 216 h, respectively. Ru-ONPS advances cellular oxygen measurement and facilitates hypoxia-dependent metastatic research and therapeutic target identification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashish Kumar
- Department of Engineering and System Science, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
| | - Venkanagouda S Goudar
- Department of Engineering and System Science, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
| | - Bishal Kumar Nahak
- Department of Engineering and System Science, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
| | - Ping-Hsun Tsai
- Department of Material Science and Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
| | - Hao-Wu Lin
- Department of Material Science and Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
| | - Fan-Gang Tseng
- Department of Engineering and System Science, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
- Institute of Nano Engineering and Microsystems, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
- Department of Chemistry, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
- Research Center for Applied Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei, 115201, Taiwan ROC
- Frontier Research Center on Fundamental and Applied Sciences of Matters, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan ROC
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Kampaengsri S, Chansaenpak K, Pewklang T, Muangsopa P, Ketudat Cairns JR, Lai RY, Kamkaew A. Quercetin Nanoparticle-Based Hypoxia-Responsive Probe for Cancer Detection. ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS 2023; 6:1546-1555. [PMID: 36921070 DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.2c01063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/17/2023]
Abstract
In this study, we developed functional nanomaterials via a phenolic-enabled nanotechnology strategy for hypoxia detection employing quercetin (QCT), an abundant flavonoid, as a polyphenolic system. The nano form of QCT was stabilized by coating it with polyethylene glycol (PEG) before loading it with a flavylium dye (Flav) as a pH indicator. The nanosystem, Flav@QCT-PEG, collapsed when it was in an acidic environment, i.e., pH 5, leading to the release of Flav, which activated the fluorescent signal. Therefore, Flav@QCT-PEG was applied to detect hypoxic tumors, known to be acidic, and responded to hypoxic environments in a dose- and time-dependent manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sastiya Kampaengsri
- School of Chemistry, Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand
| | - Kantapat Chansaenpak
- National Nanotechnology Center, National Science and Technology Development Agency, Thailand Science Park, Pathum Thani 12120, Thailand
| | - Thitima Pewklang
- School of Chemistry, Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand
| | - Prapassara Muangsopa
- School of Chemistry, Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand
| | - James R Ketudat Cairns
- School of Chemistry, Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand.,Center for Biomolecular Structure, Function and Application, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand
| | - Rung-Yi Lai
- School of Chemistry, Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand.,Center for Biomolecular Structure, Function and Application, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand
| | - Anyanee Kamkaew
- School of Chemistry, Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand
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Oh JM, Begum HM, Liu YL, Ren Y, Shen K. Recapitulating Tumor Hypoxia in a Cleanroom-Free, Liquid-Pinning-Based Microfluidic Tumor Model. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2022; 8:3107-3121. [PMID: 35678715 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.2c00207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In tumors, the metabolic demand of cancer cells often outpaces oxygen supply, resulting in a gradient of tumor hypoxia accompanied with heterogeneous resistance to cancer therapeutics. Models recapitulating tumor hypoxia are therefore essential for developing more effective cancer therapeutics. Existing in vitro models often fail to capture the spatial heterogeneity of tumor hypoxia or involve high-cost, complex fabrication/handling techniques. Here, we designed a highly tunable microfluidic device that induces hypoxia through natural cell metabolism and oxygen diffusion barriers. We adopted a cleanroom-free, micromilling-replica-molding strategy and a microfluidic liquid-pinning approach to streamline the fabrication and tumor model establishment. We also implemented a thin-film oxygen diffusion barrier design, which was optimized through COMSOL simulation, to support both two-dimensional (2-D) and three-dimensional (3-D) hypoxic models. We demonstrated that liquid-pinning enables an easy, injection-based micropatterning of cancer cells of a wide range of parameters, showing the high tunability of our design. Human breast cancer and prostate cancer cells were seeded and stained after 24 h of 2-D and 3-D culture to validate the natural induction of hypoxia. We further demonstrated the feasibility of the parallel microfluidic channel design to evaluate dual therapeutic conditions in the same device. Overall, our new microfluidic tumor model serves as a user-friendly, cost-effective, and highly scalable platform that provides spatiotemporal analysis of the hypoxic tumor microenvironments suitable for high-content biological studies and therapeutic discoveries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeong Min Oh
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Hydari Masuma Begum
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Yao Lucia Liu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Yuwei Ren
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Keyue Shen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States.,Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90033, United States.,USC Stem Cell, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90033, United States
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Significance of Specific Oxidoreductases in the Design of Hypoxia-Activated Prodrugs and Fluorescent Turn Off–On Probes for Hypoxia Imaging. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14112686. [PMID: 35681666 PMCID: PMC9179281 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14112686] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Revised: 05/08/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Hypoxia-activated prodrugs (HAPs), selectively reduced by specific oxidoreductases under hypoxic conditions, form cytotoxic agents damaging the local cancer cells. On the basis of the reported clinical data concerning several HAPs, one can draw conclusions regarding their preclinical attractiveness and, regrettably, the low efficacy of Phase III clinical trials. Clinical failure may be explained, inter alia, by the lack of screening of patients on the basis of tumor hypoxia and low availability of specific oxidoreductases involved in HAP activation. There is surprisingly little information on the quantification of these enzymes in cells or tissues, compared to the advanced research associated with the use of HAPs. Our knowledge about the expression and activity of these enzymes in various cancer cell lines under hypoxic conditions is inadequate. Only in a few cases were researchers able to demonstrate the differences in the expression or activity of selected oxidoreductases, depending on the oxygen concentration. Additionally, it was cell line dependent. More systematic studies are required. The optical probes, based on turning on the fluorescence emission upon irreversible reduction catalyzed by the overexpressed oxidoreductases, can be helpful in this type of research. Ultimately, such sensors can estimate both the oxidoreductase activity and the degree of oxygenation in one step. To achieve this goal, their response must be correlated with the expression or activity of enzymes potentially involved in turning on their emissions, as determined by biochemical methods. In conclusion, the incorporation of biomarkers to identify hypoxia is a prerequisite for successful HAP therapies. However, it is equally important to assess the level of specific oxidoreductases required for their activation. Abstract Hypoxia is one of the hallmarks of the tumor microenvironment and can be used in the design of targeted therapies. Cellular adaptation to hypoxic stress is regulated by hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1). Hypoxia is responsible for the modification of cellular metabolism that can result in the development of more aggressive tumor phenotypes. Reduced oxygen concentration in hypoxic tumor cells leads to an increase in oxidoreductase activity that, in turn, leads to the activation of hypoxia-activated prodrugs (HAPs). The same conditions can convert a non-fluorescent compound into a fluorescent one (fluorescent turn off–on probes), and such probes can be designed to specifically image hypoxic cancer cells. This review focuses on the current knowledge about the expression and activity of oxidoreductases, which are relevant in the activation of HAPs and fluorescent imaging probes. The current clinical status of HAPs, their limitations, and ways to improve their efficacy are briefly discussed. The fluorescence probes triggered by reduction with specific oxidoreductase are briefly presented, with particular emphasis placed on those for which the correlation between the signal and enzyme expression determined with biochemical methods is achievable.
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