ZnS@BSA Nanoclusters Potentiate Efficacy of Cancer Immunotherapy.

Abstract

Although immunotherapy such as immune checkpoint inhibitors has shown promising efficacy in cancer treatment, the responsiveness among patients is relatively limited. Activation of the cyclic guanosine monophosphate-adenosine monophosphate synthase/interferon gene stimulator (cGAS/STING) signaling pathway to upregulate innate immunity has become an emerging strategy for enhancing tumor immunotherapy. Herein, ZnS@BSA (bovine serum albumin) nanoclusters synthesized via a self-assembly approach are reported, where the released zinc ions under acidic tumor microenvironment significantly enhance cGAS/STING signals. Meanwhile, intracellular zinc ions can produce reactive oxygen species, which is further facilitated by the generated H2 S gas from ZnS@BSA via specifically inhibiting catalase in hepatocellular carcinoma cells. It is found that the nanoclusters activate the cGAS/STING signals in mice, which promotes the infiltration of CD8+ T cells at the tumor site and cross-presentation of dendritic cells, leading to an improved immunotherapy efficacy against hepatocellular carcinoma.

• Authors: Dong Cen, Qiwei Ge, Congkun Xie, Qiang Zheng, Jiansheng Guo, Yuqi Zhang, Yifan Wang, Xiang Li, Zhen Gu, Xiujun Cai
• Journal: Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) (Adv Mater) Vol. 33 Issue 49 Pg. e2104037 (Dec 2021) ISSN: 1521-4095 [Electronic] Germany
• PMID: 34622500 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: © 2021 Wiley-VCH GmbH.

Chemical References

• Membrane Proteins
• Sulfides
• Zinc Compounds
• Nucleotidyltransferases
• zinc sulfide

Topics

• Animals
• CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes
• Carcinoma, Hepatocellular (therapy)
• Humans
• Immunotherapy
• Liver Neoplasms (therapy)
• Membrane Proteins (metabolism)
• Metal Nanoparticles
• Mice
• Nucleotidyltransferases (genetics, metabolism)
• Sulfides
• Tumor Microenvironment
• Zinc Compounds (pharmacology)