Deng Ruotong, Chen Wei, Zhu Hanjie, Li Yuxi, Ou Yining, Wang Jian, Ruan Qing, Zhang Xuanying, Zhang Junbo, Zhang Yongxian, Niu Yantao, Hu Zhubin, Zhang Chunlei, Xu Huaping, Cao Wei
Key Laboratory of Radiopharmaceuticals of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China.
Key Lab of Organic Optoelectronics & Molecular Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China.
Nat Commun. 2025 Aug 23;16(1):7895. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-62403-8.
The escalating utilization of ionizing radiation across medicine and industry underscored the paramount urgency of effective radioprotective materials. Conventional materials such as lead and concrete are widely used, and lead-free materials have also emerged to solve the problems of cumbersome and toxic lead, such as metal-containing micro/nano materials and polymers. Nevertheless, there is still a significant challenge in meeting the urgent need for lightweight and biocompatible alternatives. To tackle this challenge, this work utilizes molecular engineering of melanin to develop a panel of metal-free melanin materials with enhanced conjugation, heightened physical shielding against radiation and effective antioxidant properties. Furthermore, engineered melanin materials demonstrated in vivo γ-ray protection, increasing mice survival from ~12% to 100% after 6 Gy total body irradiation.
电离辐射在医学和工业中的使用不断增加，凸显了有效辐射防护材料的紧迫性。铅和混凝土等传统材料被广泛使用，无铅材料也已出现，以解决铅笨重且有毒的问题，如含金属的微纳材料和聚合物。然而，在满足对轻质且生物相容的替代材料的迫切需求方面仍存在重大挑战。为应对这一挑战，本研究利用黑色素的分子工程技术，开发了一系列无金属黑色素材料，这些材料具有增强的共轭作用、更强的辐射物理屏蔽能力和有效的抗氧化性能。此外，工程化黑色素材料在体内展现出γ射线防护能力，在6 Gy全身照射后，使小鼠存活率从约12%提高到100%。
