Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Blvd., Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518055, P. R. China.
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Nangang District, Harbin, 150001, P. R. China.
Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2020 Jun 8;59(24):9702-9710. doi: 10.1002/anie.202002312. Epub 2020 Apr 2.
DNA nanotechnology plays an increasingly important role in the biomedical field; however, its application in the design of organic nanomaterials is underexplored. Herein, we report the use of DNA nanotechnology to transport a NIR-II-emitting nanofluorophore across the blood-brain barrier (BBB), facilitating non-invasive imaging of brain tumors. Specifically, the DNA block copolymer, PS-b-DNA, is synthesized through a solid-phase click reaction. We demonstrate that its self-assembled structure shows exceptional cluster effects, among which BBB-crossing is the most notable. Therefore, PS-b-DNA is utilized as an amphiphilic matrix to fabricate a NIR-II nanofluorephore, which is applied in in vivo bioimaging. Accordingly, the NIR-II fluorescence signal of the DNA-based nanofluorophore localized at a glioblastoma is 3.8-fold higher than the NIR-II fluorescence signal of the PEG-based counterpart. The notably increased imaging resolution will significantly benefit the further diagnosis and therapy of brain tumors.
DNA 纳米技术在生物医学领域中发挥着越来越重要的作用；然而，其在有机纳米材料设计中的应用还未得到充分探索。在此，我们报告了使用 DNA 纳米技术来输送近红外二区发射纳米荧光团穿越血脑屏障（BBB），从而实现对脑肿瘤的非侵入性成像。具体而言，通过固相点击反应合成了 DNA 嵌段共聚物 PS-b-DNA。我们证明其自组装结构表现出出色的聚集效应，其中最显著的是穿越 BBB。因此，PS-b-DNA 被用作两亲性基质来制备近红外二区纳米荧光团，用于体内生物成像。相应地，定位于神经胶质瘤的基于 DNA 的纳米荧光团的近红外二区荧光信号比基于 PEG 的对应物高 3.8 倍。显著提高的成像分辨率将极大地有益于脑肿瘤的进一步诊断和治疗。
