Chen Wei, Lin Chen, Gao Zhimin, Huang Yongxin, Wang Xinyi, Zhang Qian, Zhang Yaru, Tan Meiling, Hou Zhiyao
Guangzhou Municipal and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Protein Modification and Disease, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 511436, PR China.
Guangzhou Municipal and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Protein Modification and Disease, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 511436, PR China; Oncology Department, Shangrao Municipal Hospital, Shangrao 334000, PR China.
Acta Biomater. 2025 Jul 4. doi: 10.1016/j.actbio.2025.07.013.
Copper (Cu) ions are essential for inducing cuproptosis to inhibit tumor growth, and the therapeutic efficacy is limited by the chelation of over-expressed glutathione (GSH) and the efflux mechanisms of copper transporter proteins. Moreover, the hypoxic characteristic of the tumor microenvironment (TME) can impede the formation of lipoylated proteins in the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, thereby diminishing cuproptosis. Herein, CuO was served as active nano-carrier for delivering copper, followed by coating with cerium-based node metal-organic frameworks (Ce-MOFs) in situ on the surface to form core-shell structure CuO@Ce-MOFs (CM). Subsequently, the small molecule glucose transporter (GLUT) inhibitor KL-11743 was loaded onto CM to construct CuO@Ce-MOFs/KL-11743 (CMK) nanocomposites, achieving efficient cuproptosis for tumor treatment. The results show that CMK regulated the redox metabolism of the tumor microenvironment (TME) through glutathione oxidase (GSHOx) and peroxidase (POD) activities, significantly consuming excessive GSH and preventing copper ions from being chelated. Furthermore, KL-11743 released in response to TME inhibited the transport of glucose into cells via GLUT, resulting in a reduction of ATP synthesis and down-regulation of ATP7B expression, thereby achieving the restriction of copper ion efflux by regulating energy metabolism. The catalase (CAT) activity of CMK catalyzed the overexpressed HO in TME to generate O, which entered the TCA cycle to promote lipoylated proteins oligomerization for sensitizing cuproptosis. In Summary, CMK nanocomposites increased the effective Cu ions concentration within tumor cells by regulating metabolism, resulting in toxicity stress by hypoxia reversion induced efficient cuproptosis, which provides a potential strategy for clinical tumor treatment. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: This study addresses the challenge of insufficient effective copper ions and hypoxia in inhibiting cuproptosis by constructing TME-responsive Cu₂O@Ce-MOFs/KL-11743 (CMK) nanocomposites. In this design, CMK enhances intracellular copper retention through dual mechanisms: (1) redox metabolic regulation-mediated GSH depletion to inhibit copper ion chelation, and (2) KL-11743-targeted suppression of copper efflux via energy metabolic pathway inhibition. Concurrently, the enzyme-mimic activity of CMK catalyzes overexpressed H₂O₂ in the TME into O₂, alleviating hypoxia to promote lipoylated protein oligomerization. The synergistic integration of metabolic modulation and hypoxia reversal enables robust cuproptosis induction, establishing a reliable and clinically viable strategy for tumor treatment.
铜(Cu)离子对于诱导铜死亡以抑制肿瘤生长至关重要,而其治疗效果受到过表达的谷胱甘肽(GSH)螯合作用以及铜转运蛋白外排机制的限制。此外,肿瘤微环境(TME)的缺氧特性会阻碍三羧酸(TCA)循环中脂酰化蛋白的形成,从而削弱铜死亡。在此,氧化铜(CuO)作为递送铜的活性纳米载体,随后在其表面原位包覆铈基节点金属有机框架(Ce-MOFs)以形成核壳结构的CuO@Ce-MOFs(CM)。随后,将小分子葡萄糖转运蛋白(GLUT)抑制剂KL-11743负载到CM上以构建CuO@Ce-MOFs/KL-11743(CMK)纳米复合材料,实现对肿瘤治疗的高效铜死亡。结果表明,CMK通过谷胱甘肽氧化酶(GSHOx)和过氧化物酶(POD)活性调节肿瘤微环境(TME)的氧化还原代谢,显著消耗过量的GSH并防止铜离子被螯合。此外,KL-11743响应TME释放,通过抑制GLUT介导的葡萄糖进入细胞,导致ATP合成减少和ATP7B表达下调,从而通过调节能量代谢实现对铜离子外排的限制。CMK的过氧化氢酶(CAT)活性催化TME中过表达的H₂O₂生成O₂,O₂进入TCA循环促进脂酰化蛋白寡聚化以增强铜死亡敏感性。总之,CMK纳米复合材料通过调节代谢增加肿瘤细胞内有效铜离子浓度,通过缺氧逆转诱导毒性应激从而实现高效铜死亡,为临床肿瘤治疗提供了一种潜在策略。
重要意义声明:本研究通过构建对TME有响应的Cu₂O@Ce-MOFs/KL-11743(CMK)纳米复合材料,解决了抑制铜死亡过程中有效铜离子不足和缺氧的挑战。在该设计中,CMK通过双重机制增强细胞内铜保留:(1)氧化还原代谢调节介导的GSH消耗以抑制铜离子螯合,以及(2)KL-11743通过抑制能量代谢途径靶向抑制铜外排。同时,CMK的酶模拟活性将TME中过表达的H₂O₂催化生成O₂,缓解缺氧以促进脂酰化蛋白寡聚化。代谢调节和缺氧逆转的协同整合能够强力诱导铜死亡,为肿瘤治疗建立了一种可靠且临床上可行的策略。
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