In Situ Self-Assembled Nanoparticles for Cascade-Instructed Photodynamic Therapy and Real-Time Treatment Feedback...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Nanotechnology
• Cancer Therapy

Background:

• Current cancer treatments face challenges with delayed evaluation, leading to suboptimal therapeutic doses.
• Simultaneous therapy and feedback mechanisms are crucial for precise cancer treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an in situ self-assembled probe for cascade-instructed therapy and feedback imaging in cancer treatment.
• To evaluate the probe's efficacy in photodynamic therapy (PDT) and its ability to monitor treatment response through viscosity changes.

Main Methods:

• Development of a self-assembling probe (HPO-CYFF-TPP) that responds to alkaline phosphatase and laser irradiation.
• Utilizing the probe for photodynamic therapy (PDT) and monitoring changes in fluorescence (FL) and photoacoustic (PA) signals correlated with intracellular viscosity.
• In vitro and in vivo studies using tumor cells and tumor-bearing mice to assess therapeutic efficacy and feedback imaging capabilities.

Main Results:

• The self-assembled probe (HPO-CYFF-TPP) demonstrated effective PDT against tumor cells and significant tumor inhibition in mice.
• In situ nanoparticle formation enhanced therapeutic efficacy compared to a control probe (HPO-CY-TPP).
• The probe successfully monitored intracellular viscosity changes during PDT, providing real-time feedback with high FL/PA sensitivity.

Conclusions:

• The developed self-assembled probe offers a promising strategy for simultaneous cancer therapy and real-time treatment feedback imaging.
• This approach allows for more accurate monitoring of treatment response, potentially optimizing cancer therapy.
• The probe's ability to self-assemble and provide dual-mode feedback enhances its potential for clinical translation in oncology.