A deep penetrating and pH-responsive composite nanosystem was strategically developed to improve the efficacy of synergetic photothermal/photodynamic therapy (PTT/PDT) against hypoxic tumor. The designed nanosystem ([PHC]­PP@HA NPs) was constructed by coloading hemoglobin (Hb) and chlorin e6 on polydopamine to build small-sized PHC NPs, which were encapsulated inside the polymer micelles (poly­(ethylene glycol)–poly­(ethylenimine)) and then capped with functionalized hyaluronic acid. The pH-responsive feature made [PHC]­PP@HA NPs retain an initial size of ∼140 nm in blood circulation but rapidly release small PHC NPs (∼10 nm) with a high tumor-penetrating ability in the tumor microenvironment. The in vitro penetration experiment showed that the penetration depth of PHC NPs in the multicellular tumor spheroids exceeded 110 μm. The [PHC]­PP@HA NPs exhibited excellent biocompatibility, deep tumor permeability, high photothermal conversion efficiency (47.09%), and low combination index (0.59) under hypoxic conditions. Notably, the nanosystem can freely adjust the release of oxygen and damaging PHC NPs in an on-demand manner on the basis of the feedback of tumor activity. This feedback tumor therapy significantly improved the synergistic effect of PTT/PDT and reduced its toxic side effects. The in vivo antitumor results showed that the tumor inhibition rate of [PHC]­PP@HA NPs with an on-demand oxygen supply of Hb was ∼100%, which was much better than those of PTT alone and Hb-free nanoparticles ([PC]­PP@HA NPs). Consequently, the [PHC]­PP@HA NP-mediated PTT/PDT guided by feedback tumor therapy achieved an efficient tumor ablation with an extremely low tumor recurrence rate (8.3%) 60 d later, indicating the versatile potential of PTT/PDT.

Olea europaea leaves are the major byproduct of olive farming. In this study, ultrasound-assisted extraction of flavonoids from olive leaves was optimized using response surface methodology, and the flavonoid compounds and their antioxidant and anticancer activities were investigated by high performance liquid chromatography. The results showed that the optimized conditions for achieving the maximum yield of flavonoids (74.95 mg RE/g dm) were 50 °C temperature, 270 W power, 50 min time, and 41 mL/g liquid-solid ratio. There was a significant difference in the total flavonoid content between the aged and young leaves harvested in April and July, and six main components were quantified. Among them, luteolin-4’-O-glucoside was the most predominant flavonoid compound, followed by apigenin-7-O-glucoside and rutin. Olive leaves also contained small amounts of luteolin, apigenin, and quercetin. Additionally, excellent antioxidant activity was exhibited when tested with the DPPH assay; superoxide radical-scavenging ability and reducing power was also tested. The anticancer activity of the flavonoids was assessed using HeLa cervical cancer cells, and it was observed that increasing concentrations of olive leaf flavonoids resulted in decreased cancer cell viability. These results suggest that the flavonoids from olive leaves could be used as a potential source of natural antioxidants for the pharmaceutical and food industries.

Optical modulators (OMs) are a key device in modern optical systems. Due to its unique optical properties, graphene has been recently utilized in the fabrication of optical modulators, which promise high performance such as broadband response, high modulation speed, and high modulation depth. In this paper, the latest experimental and theoretical demonstrations of graphene optical modulators (GOMs) with different structures and functions are reviewed. Particularly, the principles of electro-optical and all-optical modulators are illustrated. Additionally, the limitation of GOMs and possible methods to improve performance and practicability are discussed. At last, graphene terahertz modulators (GTMs) are introduced.

A novel strategy called “two‐stage dual‐synergistic tumor therapy (TDTT),” which combines photothermal therapy with infinite coordination polymers (ICPs) chemotherapy at the first stage in the short term and two drugs of ICPs synergistic chemotherapy (coordinated dual drugs chemotherapy) at the second stage in the long term, is proposed. This strategy is achieved by preparing IR780‐loaded hyaluronic acid (HA) encapsulated gossypol–Fe(III)–epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) ICP nanoparticles (HA@IRGFE ICP NPs), which have IR780 inclusions, a natural gossypol, and EGCG coordinated with Fe3+ framework, and a HA shell. It is found that the HA@IRGFE ICP NPs’ diameter is 120.0 ± 39.5 nm and has tumor‐targeting ability and can be rapidly released in tumor environment. Their photothermal conversion efficiency is greatly improved to 47.8%, and the total combination index of TDTT is 0.38, which indicates an excellent synergistic therapy result. These HA@IRGFE ICP NPs show low toxicity with a high tolerated dose (30.0 mg kg−1), a high tumor inhibition rate of 98.7%, and a very low tumor recurrence rate over 60 days (12.5%) with TDTT strategy, indicating their great potential applications in the field of tumor therapy.

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