Oxygen-Driven Prussian Blue Nanomotors Promote Cancer Immunotherapy

Strategic Insights -

Researchers from China have made a significant breakthrough in cancer immunotherapy by developing oxygen-driven Prussian blue nanomotors that disrupt the redox state to induce disulfide death in tumor cells. This innovative therapy has the potential to induce long-term protection against cancer by promoting antigen presentation and increasing cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) infiltration. The nanomotors, consisting of glucose oxidase loaded onto hollow mesoporous Prussian blue nanocages, enable controlled release of the enzyme in a pH-responsive manner, breaking down glucose to produce hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and subsequently promoting the decomposition of H2O2 to generate oxygen (O2) for propulsion.

Key Takeaways:

  • The researchers developed oxygen-driven Prussian blue nanomotors (GOx@HPB) that induce disulfide death in tumor cells by disrupting the redox state.
  • The nanomotors consist of glucose oxidase (GOx) loaded onto hollow mesoporous Prussian blue nanocages (HPB), enabling controlled release in a pH-responsive manner.
  • Disruption of the redox state causes accumulation of cystine and breakdown of the redox system, inducing immunogenic cell death (ICD) for immune activation of tumors.
  • The therapy promotes antigen presentation and increases cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) infiltration, leading to long-term protection against cancer.
  • Shangqian Zhang, Yibo Yang, Xuan Hu, Chenhao Hu, Yinghua Lv, Yuxin Pei, Ke Ma, and Zhichao Pei are the authors of this research.
  • The study has been peer-reviewed and published in the Journal of Colloid and Interface Science.

Statistics:

  • The nanomotors are composed of 50 nm diameter hollow mesoporous Prussian blue nanocages (HPB) and 20 nm diameter glucose oxidase (GOx) nanoparticles.
  • The pH-responsive release of GOx enables controlled decomposition of glucose to produce hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and subsequent generation of oxygen (O2).
  • The researchers report a significant increase in cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) infiltration and antigen presentation following treatment with the oxygen-driven Prussian blue nanomotors.
  • The study demonstrates the potential of oxygen-driven Prussian blue nanomotors as an immunotherapeutic agent for cancer treatment.

Sources:

  • Zhang, S. et al. (2025). Oxygen-driven Prussian blue nanomotor promotes cancer immunotherapy by disrupting redox state-induced tumor disulfide death. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2025; 700: 138404.
  • NewsRx. (2025). Data on Cancer Reported by Shangqian Zhang and Colleagues (Oxygen-driven Prussian blue nanomotor promotes cancer immunotherapy by disrupting redox state-induced tumor disulfide death). Nanotechnology Weekly. August 4, 2025; p 498.