Tumor-penetrating nanoplatform with ultrasound "unlocking" for cascade synergistic therapy and visual feedback under hypoxia.

BACKGROUND

Combined therapy based on the effects of cascade reactions of nanoplatforms to combat specific solid tumor microenvironments is considered a cancer treatment strategy with transformative clinical value. Unfortunately, an insufficient O supply and the lack of a visual indication hinder further applications of most nanoplatforms for solid tumor therapy.

RESULTS

A visualizable nanoplatform of liposome nanoparticles loaded with GOD, H(Gd), and PFP and grafted with the peptide tLyP-1, named H(Gd)-GOD@PFP, was constructed. The double-domain peptide tLyP-1 was used to specifically target and penetrate the tumor cells; then, US imaging, starvation therapy and sonodynamic therapy (SDT) were then achieved by the ultrasound (US)-activated cavitation effect under the guidance of MR/PA imaging. GOD not only deprived the glucose for starvation therapy but also produced HO, which in coordination with O produced by H(Gd), enable the effects of SDT to achieve a synergistic therapeutic effect. Moreover, the synergistic therapy was enhanced by O from PFP and low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU)-accelerated redox effects of the GOD. The present study demonstrated that the nanoplatform could generate a 3.3-fold increase in ROS, produce a 1.5-fold increase in the maximum rate of redox reactions and a 2.3-fold increase in the O supply in vitro, and achieve significant tumor inhibition in vivo.

CONCLUSION

We present a visualizable nanoplatform with tumor-penetrating ability that can be unlocked by US to overcome the current treatment problems by improving the controllability of the O supply, which ultimately synergistically enhanced cascade therapy.