A Z‐scheme heterojunction with high electron–hole pairs separation efficacy and enhanced redox potentials exhibits tremendous potential in photonic theranostics, but still remains unexplored and challenging. Herein, novel 2D thermally oxidized pyrite nanosheets (TOPY NSs) with FeS2 core and Fe2O3 shell are fabricated combining ball grinding and two‐step probe sonication assisted liquid exfoliation under different solution and air environments. The Fe2O3 shell and Fe3+/Fe2+ inside TOPY NSs can both damage the tumor microenvironment through glutathione consumption and O2 production, and produce ·OH by Fenton reaction. More interestingly, a direct Z‐scheme heterojunction based on FeS2 core and Fe2O3 shell is constructed, in which the electrons in the conduction band (CB) of Fe2O3 are recombined with the holes in the valence band (VB) of FeS2, leaving stronger reduction/oxidation potentials in the CB of FeS2 and the VB of Fe2O3. Under irradiation of a 650 nm laser, the generation of ·O2− from O2 and ·OH from OH− on the CB of FeS2 and VB of Fe2O3, respectively, is largely enhanced. Furthermore, the NSs can be triggered by an 808 nm laser to generate local hyperthermia for photothermal therapy. Moreover, the fluorescent, photoacoustic, and photothermal imaging capabilities of the NSs allow multimodal imaging‐guided cancer treatment.
Nanozyme‐based tumor catalytic therapy has attracted widespread attention in recent years, but its therapeutic outcome is drastically diminished by species of nanozyme, concentration of substrate, pH value, and reaction temperature, etc. Herein, a novel Cu‐doped polypyrrole nanozyme (CuP) with trienzyme‐like activities, including catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and peroxidase (POD), is first proposed by a straightforward one‐step procedure, which can specifically promote O
2
and ·OH elevation but glutathione (GSH) reduction in tumor microenvironment (TME), causing irreversible oxidative stress damage to tumor cells and reversing the redox balance. The PEGylated CuP nanozyme (CuPP) has been demonstrated to efficiently reverse immunosuppressive TME by overcoming tumor hypoxia and re‐educating macrophage from pro‐tumoral M2 to anti‐tumoral M1 phenotype. More importantly, CuPP exhibits hyperthermia‐enhanced enzyme‐mimic catalytic and immunoregulatory activities, which results in intense immune responses and almost complete tumor inhibition by further combining with
α
PD‐L1. This work opens intriguing perspectives not only in enzyme‐catalytic nanomedicine but also in macrophage‐based tumor immunotherapy.
Neighboring carbon and sandwiched between non‐metals and metals in the periodic table of the elements, boron is one of the most chemically and physically versatile elements, and can be manipulated to form dimensionally low planar structures (borophene) with intriguing properties. Herein, the theoretical research and experimental developments in the synthesis of borophene, as well as its excellent properties and application in many fields, are reviewed. The decade‐long effort toward understanding the size‐dependent structures of boron clusters and the theory‐directed synthesis of borophene, including bottom‐up approaches based on different foundations, as well as up‐down approaches with different exfoliation modes, and the key factors influencing the synthetic effects, are comprehensively summarized. Owing to its excellent chemical, electronic, mechanical, and thermal properties, borophene has shown great promise in supercapacitor, battery, hydrogen‐storage, and biomedical applications. Furthermore, borophene nanoplatforms used in various biomedical applications, such as bioimaging, drug delivery, and photonic therapy, are highlighted. Finally, research progress, challenges, and perspectives for the future development of borophene in large‐scale production and other prospective applications are discussed.
Near infrared light, especially the second near‐infrared light (NIR II) biowindows with deep penetration and high sensitivity are widely used for optical diagnosis and phototherapy. Here, a novel kind of 2D SnTe@MnO2‐SP nanosheet (NS)‐based nanoplatform is developed for cancer theranostics with NIR II‐mediated precise optical imaging and effective photothermal ablation of mouse xenografted tumors. The 2D SnTe@MnO2‐SP NSs are fabricated via a facile method combining ball‐milling and liquid exfoliation for synthesis of SnTe NSs, and surface coating MnO2 shell and soybean phospholipid (SP). The ultrathin SnTe@MnO2‐SP NSs reveal notably high photothermal conversion efficiency (38.2% in NIR I and 43.9% in NIR II). The SnTe@MnO2‐SP NSs inherently feature tumor microenvironment (TME)‐responsive biodegradability, and the main metabolite TeO32− shows great antitumor effect, coupling synergetic chemotherapy for cancer. Moreover, the SnTe@MnO2‐SP NSs also exhibit great potential for fluorescence, photoacoustic (PA), and photothermal imaging agents in the NIR II biowindow with much higher resolution and sensitivity. This is the first report, as far as is known, with such an inorganic nanoagent setting fluorescence/PA/photothermal imaging and photothermal therapy in NIR II biowindow and TME‐responsive biodegradability rolled into one, which provide insight into the clinical potential for cancer theranostics.
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