Understanding of catalytic ROS generation from defect-rich graphene quantum-dots for therapeutic effects in tumor microenvironment

Journal of Nanobiotechnology

Chuangang Hu¹  Zi Gu¹  Liming Dai¹  Xichu Wang¹ 

[1] Australian Carbon Materials Centre (A-CMC), School of Chemical Engineering, University of New South Wales, 2052, Sydney, NSW, Australia;

关键词: Carbon-based metal-free catalyst;    Graphene quantum dot;    Defect;    Reactive oxygen species;    Tumor microenvironment;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12951-021-01053-6

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

Owing to their low cost, high catalytic efficiency and biocompatibility, carbon-based metal-free catalysts (C-MFCs) have attracted intense interest for various applications, ranging from energy through environmental to biomedical technologies. While considerable effort and progress have been made in mechanistic understanding of C-MFCs for non-biomedical applications, their catalytic mechanism for therapeutic effects has rarely been investigated. In this study, defect-rich graphene quantum dots (GQDs) were developed as C-MFCs for efficient ROS generation, specifically in the H2O2-rich tumor microenvironment to cause multi-level damages of subcellular components (even in nuclei). While a desirable anti-cancer performance was achieved, the catalytic performance was found to strongly depend on the defect density. It is for the first time that the defect-induced catalytic generation of ROS by C-MFCs in the tumor microenvironment was demonstrated and the associated catalytic mechanism was elucidated. This work opens a new avenue for the development of safe and efficient catalytic nanomedicine.

【 授权许可】

CC BY