Combination of a STING Agonist and Photothermal Therapy Using Chitosan Hydrogels for Cancer Immunotherapy.

Cyclic dinucleotides (CDNs) are a promising class of immune agonists that trigger the stimulator of interferon genes (STING) to activate both innate and acquired immunity. However, the efficacy of CDNs is limited by drug delivery barriers. Therefore, we developed a combined immunotherapy strategy based on injectable reactive oxygen species (ROS)-responsive hydrogels, which sustainably release 5,6-dimethylxanthenone-4-acetic acid (DMXAA) as known as a STING agonist and indocyanine green (ICG) by utilizing a high level of ROS in the tumor microenvironment (TME).

Injectable and Biodegradable Chitosan Hydrogel-Based Drug Depot Contributes to Synergistic Treatment of Tumors.

Combined therapy provides a more effective method in the treatment of tumors and becomes a research hotspot. To improve treatment outcomes and reduce serious side effects, hydrogel-based local delivery was developed herein to form a drug depot in suit to eliminate tumors. Indocyanine green and imiquimod were coencapsulated in the novel temperature-sensitive chitosan hydrogel.

The role of FOS-mediated autophagy activation in the indocyanine green-based photodynamic therapy for treating melanoma.

The morbidity and mortality of melanoma which accounts for 90% of cutaneous neoplasm-related deaths is growing over the last few decades. Common treatments for melanoma are limited to poor tissue selectivity, high toxicity and drug resistance. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is an effective adjuvant therapy and could be a promising therapy for melanoma.

Gold-Nanobipyramid-Based Nanotheranostics for Dual-Modality Imaging-Guided Phototherapy.

Multimodality imaging-guided therapy can improve the diagnostics and therapeutics efficiency of cancer. Herein, we developed a light-responsive nanotheranostic agent based on the indocyanine green (ICG) conjugated mesoporous silica coated gold nanobipyramid (GNB@SiO) (denoted as GNB@SiO-ICG) for simultaneous fluorescence (FL)/photoacoustic (PA) imaging-guided photothermal therapy (PTT). The GNB@SiO with excellent photostability was used for PA imaging as well as PTT.

The melanogenic effects and underlying mechanism of paeoniflorin in human melanocytes and vitiligo mice.

Vitiligo is a common depigmentary disease characterized as diagnosis simplicity and cure difficulty in view of the ambiguity of etiology, thus novel and effective treatments are urgently needed. Paeoniflorin, the major active compound extracted from the root of Paeonia lactiflora Pall, a traditional Chinese medicine, has been validated pharmacological properties such as antioxidant stress, a theory participating in the occurrence of vitiligo, but the effect on melanogenesis is still unclear. In this study, melanosythesis effect of paeoniflorin and the potential mechanism were evaluated.

Light-Responsive Biodegradable Nanorattles for Cancer Theranostics.

Cancer nanotheranostics, integrating both diagnostic and therapeutic functions into nanoscale agents, are advanced solutions for cancer management. Herein, a light-responsive biodegradable nanorattle-based perfluoropentane-(PFP)-filled mesoporous-silica-film-coated gold nanorod (GNR@SiO -PFP) is strategically designed and prepared for enhanced ultrasound (US)/photoacoustic (PA) dual-modality imaging guided photothermal therapy of melanoma. The as-prepared nanorattles are composed of a thin mesoporous silica film as the shell, which endows the nanoplatform with flexible morphology and excellent biodegradability, as well as large cavity for PFP filling.