Atomic-Level Strain-Engineered Piezoelectric Nanosheets for cGAS-STING Activation

The cGAS-STING pathway, a cornerstone of innate immunity and a crucial bridge to adaptive immune responses, represents a promising frontier in cancer immunotherapy. However, achieving tumor-specific activation and precise modulation of this pathway remains a significant challenge. Herein, we adopt an atomic-level strain engineering strategy to synthesize oxygen vacancy-enriched Cu-doped ZnAl-LDH nanosheets as an ultrasound (US)-driven piezoelectric-STING agonist. Both the structural characterizations and theoretical calculations confirm that Cu ion doping triggers the local atomic strain, oxygen vacancy generation, and bond length adjustment to optimize the d-band center and enhance the built-in electric field, significantly enhancing piezoelectric catalytic activity. Under US, this piezoelectric catalysis generates reactive oxygen species to disrupt mitochondrial integrity, trigger mtDNA release, and activate cGAS-STING pathway. Concurrently, Zn²⁺ ions liberated in the acidic tumor microenvironment amplify STING signaling. The piezoelectric activity also reduces tumor interstitial fluid pressure to improve agonist penetration and immunotherapeutic efficacy. Furthermore, cuproptosis-released damage-associated molecular patterns enhance antigen presentation and establish a synergistic "cuproptosis-innate immunity" cascade. This integrated strategy not only unveils a novel "piezoelectric catalysis-Zn²⁺ release-cuproptosis triple amplified STING" regulatory pathway, but also provides a biodegradable material platform and theoretical framework for developing tumor microenvironment-responsive and externally controlled immunotherapies.