Chen Yanming, Jia Meijie, Fan Haihan, Duan Jiayi, Fu Jianye
State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, China University of Petroleum, Qingdao 266555, China.
College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, China University of Petroleum, Qingdao 266555, China.
Nanomaterials (Basel). 2025 Aug 29;15(17):1333. doi: 10.3390/nano15171333.
Asymmetric nanomotors are a class of self-propelled nanoparticles that exhibit asymmetries in shape, composition, or surface properties. Their unique asymmetry, combined with nanoscale dimensions, endows them with significant potential in environmental and biomedical fields. For instance, glutathione (GSH) induced chemotactic nanomotors can respond to the overexpressed glutathione gradient in the tumor microenvironment to achieve autonomous chemotactic movement, thereby enhancing deep tumor penetration and drug delivery for efficient induction of ferroptosis in cancer cells. Moreover, self-assembled spearhead-like silica nanomotors reduce fluidic resistance owing to their streamlined architecture, enabling ultra-efficient catalytic degradation of lipid substrates via high loading of lipase. This review focuses on three core areas of asymmetric nanomotors: scalable fabrication (covering synthetic methods such as template-assisted synthesis, physical vapor deposition, and Pickering emulsion self-assembly), propulsion mechanisms (chemical/photo/biocatalytic, ultrasound propelled, and multimodal driving), and functional applications (environmental remediation, targeted biomedicine, and microelectronic repair). Representative nanomotors were reviewed through the framework of structure-activity relationship. By systematically analyzing the intrinsic correlations between structural asymmetry, energy conversion efficiency, and ultimate functional efficacy, this framework provides critical guidance for understanding and designing high-performance asymmetric nanomotors. Despite notable progress, the prevailing challenges primarily reside in the biocompatibility limitations of metallic catalysts, insufficient navigation stability within dynamic physiological environments, and the inherent trade-off between propulsion efficiency and biocompatibility. Future efforts will address these issues through interdisciplinary synthesis strategies.
不对称纳米马达是一类自驱动纳米颗粒，在形状、组成或表面性质上表现出不对称性。它们独特的不对称性与纳米尺度尺寸相结合，使其在环境和生物医学领域具有巨大潜力。例如，谷胱甘肽（GSH）诱导的趋化纳米马达可以响应肿瘤微环境中过表达的谷胱甘肽梯度，实现自主趋化运动，从而增强肿瘤深部渗透和药物递送，以有效诱导癌细胞发生铁死亡。此外，自组装的矛头状二氧化硅纳米马达由于其流线型结构降低了流体阻力，通过高负载脂肪酶实现脂质底物的超高效催化降解。本综述聚焦于不对称纳米马达的三个核心领域：可扩展制造（涵盖模板辅助合成、物理气相沉积和皮克林乳液自组装等合成方法）、推进机制（化学/光/生物催化、超声推进和多模态驱动）以及功能应用（环境修复、靶向生物医学和微电子修复）。通过结构-活性关系框架对代表性纳米马达进行了综述。通过系统分析结构不对称性、能量转换效率和最终功能功效之间的内在关联，该框架为理解和设计高性能不对称纳米马达提供了关键指导。尽管取得了显著进展，但当前面临的挑战主要在于金属催化剂的生物相容性限制、动态生理环境中导航稳定性不足以及推进效率与生物相容性之间的固有权衡。未来的努力将通过跨学科合成策略来解决这些问题。
