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Nanosensors to Detect Protease Activity In Vivo for Noninvasive Diagnostics
Published on: July 16, 2018
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Activity-Based Nanoprobes for Multiscale Functional Analysis of Proteases in Medulloblastomas
Ying Yu1, Yuning Wang2, Yijia Peng1
1Shanghai Institute of Pediatric Research, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Xin Hua Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200092, China.
ACS Sensors
|August 27, 2025
Summary
This study introduces novel nanoprobes for detecting enzyme activity in medulloblastoma (MB) tumors. The technology accurately identifies distinct MB subtypes and differentiates patients from healthy individuals.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Nanotechnology
- Cancer Biology
Background:
- Enzymes play crucial roles in cancer development and progression.
- Understanding enzyme activity within the tumor microenvironment (TME) is vital for effective cancer therapy.
- Current methods for profiling enzyme activity in the TME have limitations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate biomodified nanoprobes for sensitive detection of protease activity in medulloblastoma (MB).
- To analyze protease activity across different scales, from in vitro cultures to clinical samples.
- To establish a framework for multiscale measurement of protease dysregulation in cancer.
Main Methods:
- Development of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-based nanoprobes with peptide-functionalized 3D surfaces.
- Application of nanoprobes for analyzing protease activity in 2D cell cultures and 3D tumor spheroids.
- Pilot clinical assay using nanoprobe-SERS to analyze protease activity in serum samples from MB patients.
Main Results:
- Nanoprobes enabled sensitive detection and mapping of heterogeneous protease activities in MB models.
- Distinct MB cellular subtypes were recognized based on protease activity profiles.
- Spatially resolved analysis revealed suppressed protease function in the core of tumor spheroids.
- Clinical assay demonstrated elevated protease activity in MB patient sera, achieving high diagnostic accuracy (AUC=1.0).
Conclusions:
- Biomodified nanoprobes offer a sensitive and scalable platform for measuring protease activity in cancer.
- This approach facilitates the recognition of distinct cancer subtypes and provides a potential diagnostic tool.
- The study presents a novel framework for understanding and targeting enzyme dysregulation in the TME.
