Radioiodinated Persistent Luminescence Nanoplatform for Radiation-Induced Photodynamic Therapy and Radiotherapy

Radionuclide with Cerenkov radiation (CR) can serve as an internal excitation source to activate photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy (PDT) in deep tumor. However, the low efficiency of CR limits its therapeutic efficacy. A ¹³¹ I labeled zinc tetra(4-carboxyphenoxy) phthalocyaninate (ZnPcC4) conjugated Cr³⁺ -doped zinc gallate (ZnGa₂ O₄ :Cr³⁺ , ZGCs) nanoplatform (¹³¹ I-ZGCs-ZnPcC4) is developed for radiotherapy (RT) and radiation-induced PDT. ¹³¹ I can not only activate ZGCs for long-lasting luminescence via both Cerenkov luminescence (CL) and ionizing radiation, which further continuously activate photosensitizer ZnPcC4 for PDT, but also can directly kill cancerous cells. This ¹³¹ I-ZGCs-ZnPcC4 exhibits excellent tumor inhibition both in vitro and in vivo. Combining self-activated PDT and RT, it is believed that the ¹³¹ I-ZGCs-ZnPcC4 can greatly benefit the deep tumor therapy.