Modalities for photo‐triggered anticancer therapy are usually limited by their low penetrative depth. Sonotheranostics especially sonodynamic therapy (SDT), which is different from photodynamic therapy (PDT) by the use of highly penetrating acoustic waves to activate a class of sound‐responsive materials called sonosensitizers, has gained significant interest in recent years. The effect of SDT is closely related to the structural and physicochemical properties of the sonosensitizers, which has led to the development of new sound‐activated materials as sonosensitizers for various biomedical applications. This Review provides a summary and discussion of the types of novel sonosensitizers developed in the last few years and outlines their specific designs and the potential challenges. The applications of sonosensitizers with various functions such as for imaging and drug delivery as well as in combination with other treatment modalities would provide new strategies for disease therapy.

Sonodynamic therapy( SDT) has the advantages of high penetration, non-invasiveness,and controllability,and it is suitable for deep-seated tumors.However,there is still alack of effective sonosensitizers with high sensitivity,s afety,a nd penetration. Now,u ltrasound (US) and glutathione (GSH) dual responsive vesicles of Janus Au-MnO nanoparticles (JNPs) were coated with PEG and aR OS-sensitive polymer. Upon US irradiation, the vesicles were disassembled into small Janus Au-MnO nanoparticles (NPs) with promoted penetration ability.S ubsequently,G SH-triggered MnO degradation simultaneously released smaller Au NPs as numerous cavitation nucleation sites and Mn 2+ for chemodynamic therapy (CDT), resulting in enhanced reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. This also allowed dual-modality photoacoustic imaging in the second near-infrared (NIR) window and T 1 -MR imaging due to the released Mn 2+ ,a nd inhibited orthotopic liver tumor growth via synergistic SDT/CDT.

Although photodynamic therapy (PDT) has served as an important strategy for treatment of various diseases, it still experiences many challenges, such as shallow penetration of light, high‐dose light irradiation, and low therapy efficiency in deep tissue. Here, a low‐dose X‐ray‐activated persistent luminescence nanoparticle (PLNP)‐mediated PDT nanoplatform for depth‐independent and repeatable cancer treatment has been reported. In order to improve therapeutic efficiency, this study first synthesizes W(VI)‐doped ZnGa2O4:Cr PLNPs with stronger persistent luminescence intensity and longer persistent luminescence time than traditional ZnGa2O4:Cr PLNPs. The proposed PLNPs can serve as a persistent excitation light source for PDT, even after X‐ray irradiation has been removed. Both in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate that low‐dose (0.18 Gy) X‐ray irradiation is sufficient to activate the PDT nanoplatform and causes significant inhibitory effect on tumor progression. Therefore, such PDT nanoplatform will provide a promising depth‐independent treatment mode for clinical cancer therapy in the future.

BackgroundIncreased liver stiffness exerts a detrimental role in driving hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) malignancy and progression, and indicates a high risk of unfavorable outcomes. However, it remains largely unknown how liver matrix stiffness as an independent cue triggers epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and facilitates HCC metastasis.MethodsBuffalo rat HCC models with different liver stiffness backgrounds and an in vitro Col I-coated cell culture system with tunable stiffness were used in the study to explore the effects of matrix stiffness on EMT occurrence and its underlying molecular mechanism. Clinical significance of liver stiffness and key molecules required for stiffness-induced EMT were validated in HCC cohorts with different liver stiffness.ResultsHCC xenografts grown in higher stiffness liver exhibited worse malignant phenotypes and higher lung metastasis rate, suggesting that higher liver stiffness promotes HCC invasion and metastasis. Cell tests in vitro showed that higher matrix stiffness was able to strikingly strengthen malignant phenotypes and independently induce EMT occurrence in HCC cells, and three signaling pathways converging on Snail expression participated in stiffness-mediated effect on EMT including integrin-mediated S100A11 membrane translocation, eIF4E phosphorylation, and TGF β1 autocrine. Additionally, the key molecules required for stiffness-induced EMT were highly expressed in tumor tissues of HCC patients with higher liver stiffness and correlated with poor tumor differentiation and higher recurrence.ConclusionsHigher matrix stiffness as an initiator triggers epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in HCC cells independently, and three signaling pathways converging on Snail expression contribute to this pathological process. This work highlights a significant role of biomechanical signal in triggering EMT and facilitating HCC invasion and metastasis.

Programming cells to sense multiple inputs and activate cellular signal transduction cascades is of great interest. Although this goal has been achieved through the engineering of genetic circuits using synthetic biology tools, anongenetic and generic approach remains highly demanded. Herein, we present an aptamer-controlled logic receptor assembly for modulating cellular signal transduction. Aptamers were engineered as "robotic arms" to capture target receptors (c-Met and CD71) and aD NA logic assembly functioned as acomputer processor to handle multiple inputs. As ar esult, the DNAa ssembly brings c-Met and CD71 into close proximity, thus interfering with the ligand-receptor interactions of c-Met and inhibiting its functions.U sing this principle,aset of logic gates was created that respond to DNA strands or light irradiation, modulating the c-Met/HGF signal pathways. This simple modular design provides ar obust chemical tool for modulating cellular signal transduction.Supportinginformation and the ORCID identification number(s) for the author(s) of this article can be found under: https://doi.

Ultrasound (US) imaging is widely applied in hospital and clinical settings due to its non-invasiveness, controllability, and high tissue-penetrating ability.

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Hierarchical Ni@C hollow spheres composed of dispersed Ni nanoparticles confined in carbon shells were readily synthesized for efficient CO2 methanation.