携带纳米剑的铁骑士在对抗口腔癌中诱导铁死亡

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a tumor characterized by cellular redox imbalance, rendering it particularly sensitive to ferroptosis treatment.

However, traditional ferroptosis inducers have a few drawbacks. In this study, ultrasmall AuMn nanoclusters (AMNCs) with a bovine serum albumin (BSA) ligand were synthesized and encapsulated in natural killer (NK) cell-derived exosomes to form an Exo-AMNCs composite for targeted ferroptosis therapy of OSCC.

Unlike previously reported alloyed metal nanoclusters, not only do AMNCs react with intracellular H 2 O 2 to produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) and induce ferroptosis but also the BSA ligand improves biocompatibility and water solubility. These properties render AMNCs ideal for fluorescence imaging in vivo . When combined with NK cell exosomes, the Exo-AMNCs composite exhibited strong targeted imaging and therapeutic effects on OSCC.

Further investigation into the mechanistic details demonstrated that Exo-AMNCs downregulate the overexpression of fat mass and obesity-associated (FTO) in OSCC and regulate the key ferroptosis-related protein glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4).