Synergistic phototherapy has the potential to conquer the extreme heterogeneity and complexity of difficult tumors and result in better cancer treatment outcomes than monomodal photodynamic therapy (PDT) or photothermal therapy (PTT). However, the previous approaches to combining PDT and PTT are mainly focused on primary tumor obliteration while neglecting tumor metastasis, which is responsible for about 90% of cancer deaths. It is shown that a combined PDT/PTT approach, based on upconversion‐polymer hybrid nanoparticles with surface‐loaded chlorin e6 photosensitizer, can enhance primary tumor elimination and elicit antitumor immunity against disseminated tumors. The specifical arrangement of an external upconversion coating over the polymer core ensures adequate photoabsorption by the upconversion nanoparticles for the generation of reactive oxygen species upon single near‐infrared light irradiation. Furthermore, it is found that synergistic phototherapy can elicit robust systemic and humoral antitumor immune responses. When combined with immune checkpoint blockades, it can inhibit tumor relapse and metastasis as well as prolong the survival of tumor‐bearing mice in two types of tumor metastasis models. This study may establish a new modality for enhancing immunogenic cell death through a synergistic phototherapeutic nanoplatform and extend this strategy to overcome tumor metastasis with an augmented antitumor immune response.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are essential for the regulation of antitumor immune responses, where they could induce immunogenic cell death, promote antigen presentation, and activate immune cells. Here, we report the development of near-infrared (NIR)–driven immunostimulants, based on coupling upconversion nanoparticles with aggregation-induced emission luminogens (AIEgens), to integrate the immunological effects of ROS for enhanced adaptive antitumor immune responses. Intratumorally injected AIEgen-upconversion nanoparticles produce high-dose ROS under high-power NIR irradiation, which induces immunogenic cell death and antigen release. These nanoparticles can also capture the released antigens and deliver them to lymph nodes. Upon subsequent low-power NIR treatment of lymph nodes, low-dose ROS are generated to further trigger efficient T cell immune responses through activation of dendritic cells, preventing both local tumor recurrence and distant tumor growth. The utility of dual-mode pumping power on AIEgen-coupled upconversion nanoparticles offers a powerful and controllable platform to activate adaptive immune systems for tumor immunotherapy.

Heterogeneous 3D cell microenvironment arrays are rapidly assembled by combining surface-wettability-guided assembly and microdroplet-array-based operations. This approach enables precise control over individual shapes, sizes, chemical concentrations, cell density, and 3D spatial distribution of multiple components. This technique provides a cost-effective solution to meet the increasing demand of stem cell research, tissue engineering, and drug screening.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of 2019 novel coronavirus, known as 2019-nCoV, a pandemic, as the coronavirus has now infected over 2.6 million people globally and caused more than 185,000 fatalities as of April 23, 2020. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) causes a respiratory illness with symptoms such as dry cough, fever, sudden loss of smell, and, in more severe cases, difficulty breathing. To date, there is no specific vaccine or treatment proven effective against this viral disease. Early and accurate diagnosis of COVID-19 is thus critical to curbing its spread and improving health outcomes. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is commonly used to detect the presence of COVID-19. Other techniques, such as recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA), loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR), and microfluidics, have allowed better disease diagnosis. Here, as part of the effort to expand screening capacity, we review advances and challenges in the rapid detection of COVID-19 by targeting nucleic acids, antigens, or antibodies. We also summarize potential treatments and vaccines against COVID-19 and discuss ongoing clinical trials of interventions to reduce viral progression.