Naphthalimide‐Based Type‐I Nano‐Photosensitizers for Enhanced Antitumor Photodynamic Therapy: H <sub>2</sub> S Synergistically Regulates PeT and Self‐Assembly
Abstract
Abstract Photodynamic therapy (PDT) relies on a combination of light and photosensitizers (PSs) to achieve local control over cancerous lesions. However, it is subject to limitations, including tumor hypoxia, low tumor targeting, off‐target phototoxicity, and always‐on fluorescence. Here, we propose a design strategy for activated nano‐PSs (N‐PSs) to simultaneously overcome the limitations of PDT, wherein photoinduced electron transfer (PeT) is coupled with an endogenous H 2 S‐regulated self‐association process to promote Type‐I photochemical reactions. Using theoretical calculations, spectral analysis, and microscopic imaging, we verified the generation of self‐assembly and occurrence of PeT. And it was also shown that H 2 S could synergistically inhibit the PeT and self‐assembly, reflecting by a 21‐fold increase in fluorescence intensity at 635 nm and 35‐fold enhancement of the Type‐I photochemical reaction as inferred from O 2 − generation. Moreover, the most promising self‐assembled N‐PS, Ts3‐ONB , was found to almost completely inhibit tumor growth in mice under two‐photon excitation through the synergistic regulation of PeT and self‐assembly by endogenous H 2 S ( V 14 days Ts3‐ONB + Light group / V 14 days Control group ≈ 0.02). As such, the synergistic combination of PeT and self‐assembly is an effective design strategy for developing advanced N‐PSs that can address some current PDT limitations.
Article Details
Authors (13)
Huiyu Niu
Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Media and Reactions Ministry of Education Henan International Joint Laboratory of Smart Molecules and Identification and Diagnostic Functions Collaborative Innovation Centre of Henan Province for Green Manufacturing of Fine Chemicals School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Henan Normal University Xinxiang Henan 453007 P.R. China
Songnan Wang
Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Media and Reactions Ministry of Education Henan International Joint Laboratory of Smart Molecules and Identification and Diagnostic Functions Collaborative Innovation Centre of Henan Province for Green Manufacturing of Fine Chemicals School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Henan Normal University Xinxiang Henan 453007 P.R. China
Yang Liu
Nana Ma
Henan Key Laboratory of Boron Chemistry and Advanced Energy Materials Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Media and Reactions Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Henan Normal University Xinxiang China
Shuaiwei Cheng
Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Media and Reactions Ministry of Education Henan International Joint Laboratory of Smart Molecules and Identification and Diagnostic Functions Collaborative Innovation Centre of Henan Province for Green Manufacturing of Fine Chemicals School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Henan Normal University Xinxiang Henan 453007 P.R. China
Beidou Feng
Collaborative Innovation Centre of Henan Province For Green Manufacturing of Fine Chemicals Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Media and Reactions Ministry of Education, Henan Key Laboratory of Organic Functional Molecule and Drug Innovation School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Henan Normal University Xinxiang China
Hyunsun Jeong
Department of Chemistry and Nanoscience
Yonggang Yang
State Key Laboratory of Quantum Optics Technologies and Devices, Institute of Laser Spectroscopy, Shanxi University 1 , Taiyuan 030006,
Ge Wang
Tony D. James
University of Bath , , ,
Juyoung Yoon
Department of Chemistry and Nanoscience
Jonathan L. Sessler
Hua Zhang