Integrating Anion-π+ Interaction and Crowded Conformation to Develop Multifunctional NIR AIEgen for Effective Tumor Theranostics via Hippo-YAP Pathway

作者：Yang, Shiping; Yu, Hongchi; Liu, Junkai; Ma, Lunjie; Hou, Zhe; Ma, Jia; Miao, Michael Z.; Kwok, Ryan T. K.; Sun, Jianwei; Sung, Herman H. Y.; Williams, Ian D.; Lam, Jacky W. Y.^*; Liu, Xiaoheng^*; Tang, Ben Zhong^*

来源：ACS Nano, 2023, 17(21): 21182-21194.

DOI：10.1021/acsnano.3c05080

• anion-pi(+) interaction
• crowdedconformation
• aggregation-induced emission
• phototheranosticagents
• Hippo-YAP signaling pathway

The technology of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) presents a promising avenue for fluorescence imaging-guided photodynamic cancer therapy. However, existing near-infrared AIE photosensitizers (PSs) frequently encounter limitations, including tedious synthesis, poor tumor retention, and a limited understanding of the underlying molecular biology mechanism. Herein, an effective molecular design paradigm of anion-pi(+) interaction combined with the inherently crowded conformation that could enhance fluorescence efficacy and reactive oxygen species generation was proposed through a concise synthetic method. Mechanistically, upon photosensitization, the Hippo signaling pathway contributes to the death of melanoma cells and promotes the nuclear location of its downstream factor, yes-associated protein, which regulates the transcription and expression of apoptosis-related genes. The finding in this study would trigger the development of high-performance and versatile AIE PSs for precision cancer therapy based on a definite regulatory mechanism.

• 单位
  四川大学