Ultrasound (US)‐triggered sonodynamic therapy (SDT), as a promising noninvasive therapeutic modality, has received ever‐increasing attention in recent years. Its specialized chemical agents, named ...sonosensitizers, are activated by low‐intensity US to produce lethal reactive oxygen species (ROS) for oncotherapy. Compared with phototherapeutic strategies, SDT provides many noteworthy opportunities and benefits, such as deeper penetration depth, absence of phototoxicity, and fewer side effects. Nevertheless, previous studies have also demonstrated its intrinsic limitations. Thanks to the facile engineering nature of nanotechnology, numerous novel nanoplatforms are being applied in this emerging field to tackle these intrinsic barriers and achieve continuous innovations. In particular, the combination of SDT with other treatment strategies has demonstrated a superior efficacy in improving anticancer activity relative to that of monotherapies alone. Therefore, it is necessary to summarize the nanomaterial‐assisted combinational sonodynamic cancer therapy applications. Herein, the design principles in achieving synergistic therapeutic effects based on nanomaterial engineering methods are highlighted. The ultimate goals are to stimulate the design of better‐quality combined sonodynamic treatment schemes and provide innovative ideas for the perspectives of SDT in promoting its future transformation to clinical application.
Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) is becoming a rising star on the horizon of nanomedicine and has received ever‐increasing attention in recent years. In particular, SDT‐involved combination therapy opens up new therapeutic possibilities and is developing into an exciting tide. An overview on nanomaterial‐assisted combinational sonodynamic cancer therapy is given, with the hope of advancing SDT toward the stage of clinical trials.
Lanthanide ion (Ln(3+))-based upconversion nano/micromaterials that emit higher-energy visible light when excited by low-energy NIR light have aroused considerable attention in the forefront of ...materials science and biomedical fields, which stems from their unique optical and chemical properties including minimum photodamage to living organisms, low autofluorescence, high signal-to-noise ratio and detection sensitivity, and high penetration depth in biological or environmental samples. Thus, Ln(3+)-based upconversion materials are rising new stars and are quickly emerging as potential candidates to revolutionize novel biomedical applications. In this review article, we mainly focus on the recent progress in various chemical syntheses of Ln(3+)-based upconversion nanomaterials, with special emphasis on their application in stimuli-response controlled drug release and subsequent therapy. Functional groups that are introduced into the stimuli-responsive system can respond to external triggers, such as pH, temperature, light, and even magnetic fields, which can regulate the movement of the pharmaceutical cargo and release the drug at a desired time and in a desired area. This is crucial to boost drug efficacy in cancer treatment while minimizing the side effects of cytotoxic drugs. Many multifunctional (magnetic/upconversion luminescence and porous) composite materials based on Ln(3+) have been designed for controlled drug delivery and multimodal bioimaging. Finally, the challenges and future opportunities for Ln(3+)-based upconversion materials are discussed.
Phosphor-converted white-light-emitting diodes (pc-WLED) have been extensively employed as solid-state lighting sources, which have a very important role in people's daily lives. However, due to the ...scarcity of the red component, it is difficult to realize warm white light efficiently. Hence, red-emitting phosphors are urgently required for improving the illumination quality. In this work, we develop a novel orangish-red La
GeO
:Bi
phosphor, the emission peak of which is located at 600 nm under near-ultraviolet (n-UV) light excitation. The full width at half maximum (fwhm) is 103 nm, the internal quantum efficiency (IQE) exceeds 88%, and the external quantum efficiency (EQE) is 69%. According to Rietveld refinement analysis and density functional theory (DFT) calculations, Bi
ions randomly occupy all La sites in orthorhombic La
GeO
. Importantly, the oxygen-vacancy-induced electronic localization around the Bi
ions is the main reason for the highly efficient orangish-red luminescence. These results provide a new perspective and insight from the local electron structure for designing inorganic phosphor materials that realize the unique luminescence performance of Bi
ions.
Organic/inorganic hybrid lead halide perovskites are promising optoelectronic materials due to their unique structure, excellent properties, and fascinating potential applications in lighting, ...photovoltaic, etc. However, perovskite materials are very sensitive to moisture and polar solvent, which greatly hinders their practical applications. Here, highly luminescent perovskite–polystyrene composite beads with uniform morphology are prepared via a simple swelling–shrinking strategy. This process is carried out only in nonpolar toluene and hexane without the addition of any polar reagents. As a result, the as‐prepared composite beads not only retain high luminescence but also exhibit superior water‐resistant property. The composites emit strong luminescence after being immersed into water over nine months. Moreover, even in some harsh environments such as acid/alkali aqueous solution, phosphate buffer solution, and Dulbecco's modified eagle medium biological buffers, they still preserve high luminescence. The applications in light‐emitting diodes and cellular labeling agents are also carried out to demonstrate their ultrastability.
Highly luminescent perovskite–polystyrene composite beads with uniform morphology are prepared by packing perovskite quantum dots in crosslinked polystyrene beads via swelling in toluene and then shrinking the beads in hexane. The composite not only retains high luminescence but also exhibits superior water resistance.
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising antitumor treatment that is based on the photosensitizers that inhibit cancer cells by yielding reactive oxygen species (ROS) after irradiation of light with ...specific wavelengths. As a potential photosensitizer, titanium dioxide (TiO2) exhibits minimal dark cytotoxicity and excellent ultraviolet (UV) light triggered cytotoxicity, but is challenged by the limited tissue penetration of UV light. Herein, a novel near-infrared (NIR) light activated photosensitizer for PDT based on TiO2-coated upconversion nanoparticle (UCNP) core/shell nanocomposites (UCNPs@TiO2 NCs) is designed. NaYF4:Yb3+,Tm3+@NaGdF4:Yb3+ core/shell UCNPs can efficiently convert NIR light to UV emission that matches well with the absorption of TiO2 shells. The UCNPs@TiO2 NCs endocytosed by cancer cells are able to generate intracellular ROS under NIR irradiation, decreasing the mitochondrial membrane potential to release cytochrome c into the cytosol and then activating caspase 3 to induce cancer cell apoptosis. NIR light triggered PDT of tumor-bearing mice with UCNPs@TiO2 as photosensitizers can suppress tumor growth efficiently due to the better tissue penetration than UV irradiation. On the basis of the evidence of in vitro and in vivo results, UCNPs@TiO2 NCs could serve as an effective photosensitizer for NIR light mediated PDT in antitumor therapy.
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) plays a key role in therapeutic effects as well as side effects of platinum drugs. Cisplatin mediates activation of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) ...oxidase (NOX), which triggers oxygen (O2) to superoxide radical (O2 • –) and its downstream H2O2. Through the Fenton’s reaction, H2O2 could be catalyzed by Fe2+/Fe3+ to the toxic hydroxyl radicals (•OH), which cause oxidative damages to lipids, proteins, and DNA. By taking the full advantage of Fenton’s chemistry, we herein demonstrated tumor site-specific conversion of ROS generation induced by released cisplatin and Fe2+/Fe3+ from iron-oxide nanocarriers with cisplatin(IV) prodrugs for enhanced anticancer activity but minimized systemic toxicity.
Controlling anticancer drug activity and release on demand is very significant in cancer therapy. The photoactivated platinum(IV) pro-drug is stable in the dark and can be activated by UV light. In ...this study, we develop a multifunctional drug delivery system combining upconversion luminescence/magnetic resonance/computer tomography trimodality imaging and NIR-activated platinum pro-drug delivery. We use the core–shell structured upconversion nanoparticles to convert the absorbed NIR light into UV to activate the trans-platinum(IV) pro-drug, trans,trans,trans-Pt(N3)2(NH3)(py)(O2CCH2CH2COOH)2. Compared with using the UV directly, the NIR has a higher tissue penetration depth and is less harmful to health. Meanwhile, the upconversion nanoparticles can effectively deliver the platinum(IV) pro-drugs into the cells by endocytosis. The mice treated with pro-drug-conjugated nanoparticles under near-infrared (NIR) irradiation demonstrated better inhibition of tumor growth than that under direct UV irradiation. This multifunctional nanocomposite could be used as multimodality bioimaging contrast agents and transducers by converting NIR light into UV for control of drug activity in practical cancer therapy.
In this study, we report a new controlled release system based on up-conversion luminescent microspheres of NaYF4:Yb3+/Er3+ coated with the smart hydrogel poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-co-(methacrylic ...acid) (P(NIPAM-co-MAA)) (prepared using 5 mol % of MAA) shell. The hybrid microspheres show bright up-conversion fluorescence under 980 nm laser excitation, and turbidity measurements show that the low critical solution temperature of the polymer shell is thermo- and pH-dependent. We have exploited the hybrid microspheres as carriers for Doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX) due to its stimuli-responsive property as well as good biocompatibility via MTT assay. It is found that the drug release behavior is pH-triggered thermally sensitive. Changing the pH to mildly acidic condition at physiological temperature deforms the structure of the shell, causing the release of a large number of DOX from the microspheres. The drug-loaded microspheres exhibit an obvious cytotoxic effect on SKOV3 ovarian cancer cells. The endocytosis process of drug-loaded microspheres is observed using confocal laser scanning microscopy and up-conversion luminescence microscopy. Meanwhile, the as-prepared NaYF4:Yb3+/Er3+@SiO2@P(NIPAM-co-MAA) microspheres can be used as a luminescent probe for cell imaging. In addition, the extent of drug release can be monitored by the change of up-conversion emission intensity. These pH-induced thermally controlled drug release systems have potential to be used for in vivo bioimaging and cancer therapy by the pH of the microenvironment changing from 7.4 (normal physiological environment) to acidic microenvironments (such as endosome and lysosome compartments) owing to endocytosis.
Abstract Multifunctional strontium hydroxyapatite (SrHAp) nanorods with luminescent and mesoporous properties have been successfully synthesized by a hydrothermal method. SEM and TEM images indicate ...that the mesoporous SrHAp samples consist of monodiperse nanorods with lengths of 120–150 nm, diameters of around 20 nm, and the mesopore size of 3–5 nm. The as-obtained SrHAp nanorods show an intense bright blue emission (centered at 432 nm, lifetime 11.6 ns, quantum efficiency: 22%), which might arise from CO2 ·− radical impurities in the crystal lattice under long-wavelength UV-light irradiation. Furthermore, the amount of trisodium citrate has an obvious impact on the particle size and the luminescence properties of the products, respectively. The drug storage/release test indicates that the luminescent SrHAp nanorods show a drug loading and controlled release properties for ibuprofen (IBU). Additionally, the emission intensity of SrHAp in the drug carrier system increases with the cumulative released amount of IBU, making the drug release might be easily tracked and monitored by the change of the luminescence intensity. This luminescent material may be potentially applied in the drug delivery and disease therapy fields.
The near-infrared (NIR) region (700-1100 nm) is the so-called transparency "therapeutic window" for biological applications owing to its deeper tissue penetration and minimal damage to healthy ...tissues. In recent years, various NIR-based therapeutic and interventional strategies, such as NIR-triggered drug delivery, photothermal therapy (PTT) and photodynamic therapy (PDT), are under research in intensive preclinical and clinical investigations for cancer treatment. The NIR control in these cancer therapy systems is considered crucial to boost local effective tumor suppression while minimizing side effects, resulting in improved therapeutic efficacy. Some researchers even predict the NIR-triggered cancer therapy to be a new and exciting possibility for clinical nanomedicine applications. In this review, the rapid development of NIR light-responsive cancer therapy based on various smartly designed nanocomposites for deep tumor treatments is introduced. In detail, the use of NIR-sensitive materials for chemotherapy, PTT as well as PDT is highlighted, and the associated challenges and potential solutions are discussed. The applications of NIR-sensitive cancer therapy modalities summarized here can highlight their potential use as promising nanoagents for deep tumor therapy.
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