Reactive
oxygen species (ROS) generators are sparking
breakthroughs
in sensitization and treatment of therapy-resistant tumors, yet the
efficacy is drastically compromised by limited substrate concentrations,
short lifetimes of free radicals, and restricted oxidative damage.
Herein, a flower-like nanozyme with highly permeable leaflets accommodating
catalytic metal sites was developed to address the challenges by boosting
substrate and product accessibility. In the formation of a zeolite
imidazole framework, cobalt ions promoted catalytic polymerization
and deposition of polydopamine. The polymers acted as a stiffener
for preventing framework collapse and maneuvering pore reopening during
carbonization. The cobalt single-atom/cluster sites in the highly
porous matrix generated peroxidase/oxidase-like activities with high
catalytic efficiency (K
cat/K
m) up to 6 orders of magnitude greater than that of conventional
nano-/biozymes. Thereby, a robust ROS storm induced by selective catalysis
led to rapid accumulation of oxidative damage and failure of antioxidant
and antiapoptotic defense synchronization in drug-resistant cancer
cells. By synergy of a redox homeostasis disrupter co-delivered, a
significantly high antitumor efficiency was realized in vivo. This work offers a route to kinetically favorable ROS generators
for advancing the treatment of therapy-resistant tumors.
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