Conventional clinical monotherapies for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have numerous limitations. Integrated oncology approaches can improve cancer treatment efficacy, and photothermal-chemotherapy drug delivery nanosystems (DDS) based on nanotechnology and biotechnology have piqued the interest of researchers. This study developed an aptamer-modified graphene quantum dots (GQDs)/magnetic chitosan DDS for photothermal-chemotherapy of HCC. The HCC aptamer and the EPR effect of nanoparticles, in particular, enable active and passive targeting of DDS to HCC. GQDs functioned as photosensitizers, effectively moderating photothermal therapy and inhibiting drug release during blood circulation. Magnetic chitosan demonstrated excellent drug encapsulation, acid sensitivity, and tumor imaging capabilities. Proper assembly of the units mentioned above enables precise combined therapy of HCC. This study indicates that DDS can significantly inhibit tumor growth while also extending the survival duration of tumor-bearing mice. The DDS (DOX-Fe 3 O 4 @CGA) shows strong synergistic tumor treatment potential, allowing for the exploration and development of novel HCC therapies.

IntroductionDetection of antigen-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) is the foundation for understanding hepatocellular carcinoma immune pathology and hepatocellular carcinoma immunotherapy. However, the classical method for labeling CTLs, major histocompatibility complex (MHC)–peptide tetramer, has drawbacks and needs further improvement.Materials and methodsHere, as a new detection probe, a graphene-based MHC–peptide multimer was developed for sensitively and selectively identifying hepatocellular carcinoma-specific T-cells. To assess its detection efficiency, reduced graphene oxide (RGO) was functionalized with hemin and streptavidin to prepare a functionalized HRGO–streptavidin complex. Biotinylated MHC–peptide monomer was subsequently constructed onto HRGO to generate a detection probe for CTL labeling. The number of T-cells was detected through the reaction between HRGO and tetramethylbenzidine.ResultsUsing HRGO/MHC–peptide multimers, the number of T-cells was efficiently detected in both the induction system in vitro and in peripheral blood of patients.ConclusionHRGO/MHC-peptide multimers methodology has application prospects in the detection of antigen peptide-specific T cells.

A highly sensitive electrochemical biosensor was manufactured with triple synergistic catalysis to detect hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ). In this study, a highly sensitive biosensor based on Prussian blue-chitosan/graphene-hemin nanomaterial/platinum and palladium nanoparticles (PB-CS/HGNs/Pt&Pd biosensor) was fabricated for the detection of H 2 O 2 . The materials described above were modified on the electrode surface and applied to catalyze the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide. The current response of the biosensor presented a linear relationship with H 2 O 2 concentration from 6 × 10 −2 to 20 μM (R 2 = 0.9766) and with the logarithm of H 2 O 2 concentration from 20 to 9×10 3 μM (R 2 = 0.9782), the low detection limit of 25 nM was obtained at the signal/noise (S/N) ratio of 3. Besides, the biosensor showed an outstanding anti-interference ability and acceptable reproducibility. PB-CS/HGNs/Pt&Pd electrodes are effective in measuring H 2 O 2 from living tumor cells, which implies that the biosensor has the potential to assess reactive oxygen species in various living tumor cells.