Fe/MOF based platform for NIR laser induced efficient PDT/PTT of cancer

Zixing Liang; Xiaofeng Li; Xiaofang Chen; Jiawei Zhou; Yanan Li; Jianhui Peng; Zhousheng Lin; Gai Liu; Xiancheng Zeng; Cheng Li; Lifeng Hang; Hailiang Li

doi:10.3389/fbioe.2023.1156079

Fe/MOF based platform for NIR laser induced efficient PDT/PTT of cancer

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2023 Mar 30:11:1156079. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2023.1156079. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Zixing Liang¹, Xiaofeng Li¹, Xiaofang Chen², Jiawei Zhou¹, Yanan Li¹, Jianhui Peng¹, Zhousheng Lin¹, Gai Liu¹, Xiancheng Zeng¹, Cheng Li^{1

3

4}, Lifeng Hang¹, Hailiang Li¹

Affiliations

¹ Guangdong Second Provincial General Hospital, Guangzhou, China.
² Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China.
³ Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.
⁴ Hainan General Hospital, Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Hainan, China.

Abstract

Introduction: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) and photothermal therapy (PTT) are widely used in the treatment of tumors. However, their application in the treatment of clinical tumors is limited by the complexity and irreversible hypoxia environment generated by tumor tissues. To overcome this limitation, a nanoparticle composed of indocyanine green (ICG) and Fe-MOF-5 was developed. Methods: We prepared F-I@FM5 and measured its morphology, particle size, and stability. Its enzyme like ability and optical effect was verified. Then we used MTT, staining and flow cytometry to evaluated the anti-tumor effect on EMT-6 cells in vitro. Finally, the anti-tumor effect in vivo has been studied on EMT-6 tumor bearing mice. Results: For the composite nanoparticle, we confirmed that Fe-MOF-5 has the best nanozyme activity. In addition, it has excellent photothermal conversion efficiency and generates reactive oxygen species (ROS) under near-infrared light irradiation (808 nm). The composite nanoparticle showed good tumor inhibition effect in vitro and in vivo, which was superior to the free ICG or Fe-MOF-5 alone. Besides, there was no obvious cytotoxicity in major organs within the effective therapeutic concentration. Discussion: Fe-MOF-5 has the function of simulating catalase, which can promote the decomposition of excessive H₂O₂ in the tumor microenvironment and produce oxygen to improve the hypoxic environment. The improvement of tumor hypoxia can enhance the efficacy of PDT and PTT. This research not only provides an efficient and stable anti-tumor nano platform, but also has broad application prospects in the field of tumor therapy, and provides a new idea for the application of MOF as an important carrier material in the field of photodynamic therapy.

Keywords: MOF; microenvironment; nanoenzyme; photodynamic therapy; photothermal therapy; tumor.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Science and Technology Projects in Guangzhou (No. 202102021064, 2023A03J0274), Doctoral workstation foundation of Guangdong Second Provincial General hospital (No. 2021BSG8011), Nature Science Foundation of China (No. 81900132).