Volume 64, Issue 28 e202500996
Research Article

Tumor-Specific On-Site Activation of Cisplatin via Cascade Catalytic-Redox Reactions for Highly Efficient Chemo-Immunotherapy

Dr. Gang-Gang Yang

Dr. Gang-Gang Yang

School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan, Anhui, 243002 P.R. China

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Search for more papers by this author
Bin Liu

Bin Liu

MOE Key Laboratory of Bioinorganic and Synthetic Chemistry, GBRCE for Functional Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 P.R. China

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Search for more papers by this author
Wei Liu

Wei Liu

School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan, Anhui, 243002 P.R. China

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Search for more papers by this author
Lan Zhang

Lan Zhang

School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan, Anhui, 243002 P.R. China

Search for more papers by this author
Can Ke

Can Ke

School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan, Anhui, 243002 P.R. China

Search for more papers by this author
Dr. Xinya Han

Dr. Xinya Han

School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan, Anhui, 243002 P.R. China

Search for more papers by this author
Dr. Qian Cao

Corresponding Author

Dr. Qian Cao

MOE Key Laboratory of Bioinorganic and Synthetic Chemistry, GBRCE for Functional Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 P.R. China

E-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]

Search for more papers by this author
Prof. Dr. Zong-Wan Mao

Corresponding Author

Prof. Dr. Zong-Wan Mao

MOE Key Laboratory of Bioinorganic and Synthetic Chemistry, GBRCE for Functional Molecular Engineering, School of Chemistry, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 P.R. China

E-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 04 May 2025
Citations: 1

Graphical Abstract

A double-lock protected PtII nanomedicine has been developed, which performs cascade unlocking of cisplatin (cDDP) via catalytic-redox reactions, thus achieving tumor-specific “on-site” activation of cDDP in the nucleus accompanied with substantial induction of ferroptosis for highly efficient chemo-immunotherapy.

Abstract

The therapeutic efficiency of platinum drugs is always limited by low utilization, side effects, and Pt-resistance. Herein, a double-lock protected PtII nanomedicine named PtNP@Cu has been developed, which performs cascade unlocking of dechlorinated cisplatin (DP) via catalytic-redox reactions, thus achieving tumor-specific “on-site” activation of cisplatin (cDDP) in the nucleus accompanied with substantial induction of ferroptosis of cancer cells. This design avoids the premature release of active PtII species in normal cells or in the cytoplasm of cancer cells before reaching nucleus, thereby ensuring maximum amplification of Pt-DNA crosslinking with tumor-specificity. Meanwhile, substantial GSH depletion and ROS production induced by cascade catalytic-redox reactions results in ferroptosis of cancer cells, which further reduces GSH-mediated cDDP detoxification, overcomes Pt-resistance, and enhances immunogenicity, ultimately realizing highly efficient tumor-specific chemotherapy and antitumor immunity in vivo. This work provides a new strategy for effectively and comprehensively addressing the issues of low utilization, side effects, and drug resistance problems of platinum drugs, which is also promising for chemo-immunotherapy.

Conflict of Interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available in the supporting information of this article.

The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties.