2. Academic Validation
  3. K2FeO4-Enhanced Photodynamic Therapy of Breast Cancer via In Situ Synthesis of Fe2O3 and O2

K2FeO4-Enhanced Photodynamic Therapy of Breast Cancer via In Situ Synthesis of Fe2O3 and O2

  • Adv Healthc Mater. 2025 Jan;14(2):e2402827. doi: 10.1002/adhm.202402827.
Yi Sun 1,  Xin Peng 2,  Yudong Guan 3,  Tong Su 1,  Zezun Xie 2,  Ziying Wu 4,  Yongxuan Long 2,  Huihui Zhu 1,  Jie Shao 5,  Xiaoli Mai 2,  Xuzhi Shi 6,  Tingting Wu 6,  Zhaogang Teng 6,  Bing Zhang 2,  Kun Chen 7,  Xiaoyan Xin 1 2
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, 138 Xianlin Road, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210023, China.
  • 2 Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, 22 Hankou Road, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210008, China.
  • 3 School of Stomatology, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan, 475000, China.
  • 4 Department of General Surgery, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510282, China.
  • 5 Department of Oncology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, 138 Xianlin Road, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210023, China.
  • 6 Key Laboratory for Organic Electronics and Information Displays, Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Biosensors, Institute of Advanced Materials, Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Centre for Advanced Materials, Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, 9 Wenyuan Road, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210023, China.
  • 7 NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Drug Metabolism & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Screening & Guangdong-Hongkong-Macao Joint Laboratory for New Drug Screening, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China.
PMID: 39487638 DOI: 10.1002/adhm.202402827
Abstract

Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) offers a promising minimally invasive treatment for breast Cancer, but its efficacy is limited by the hostile tumor microenvironment (TME), including hypoxia and high glutathione (GSH) levels. Although various strategies to improve oxygen concentration or reduce Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) resistance for enhanced PDT have been explored, they typically require intricate design and complex synthesis of multifunctional nanocarriers. Thus, this study introduces a facile K2FeO4-induced strategy to enhance PDT efficiency in breast Cancer through the tumor in situ synthesis of Fe2O3 and O2. Inspired by the successful application of K2FeO4 in ecological remediation and hemostasis, K2FeO4 reacts with GSH, biological system, H2O2, and water, to generate Fe2O3 and O2. Intratumoral injection of K2FeO4 improves the TME, followed by Ce6 administration to enhance PDT through synergistic Ferroptosis. This approach boosts PDT efficacy significantly by increasing ROS generation, lipid peroxidation, and inhibiting GSH and GPX4. Proteomic analysis revealed alterations in key pathways, including endocytosis and energy metabolism. This K2FeO4-PDT strategy creates a positive feedback loop by enhancing oxidative stress, providing an interesting and promising approach to PDT.

Keywords

ferroptosis; iron oxide; photodynamic therapy; potassium ferrate (VI).

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