Advances in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography for the treatment of cholangiocarcinoma

Cholangiocarcinoma(CCA) is a malignancy of the bileducts that carries high morbidity and mortality. Patients with CCA typically present with obstructive jaundice, and associated complications of CCA include cholangitis and biliary sepsis. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP) is a valuable treatment modality for patients with CCA, as it enables internal drainage of blocked bile ducts and hepatic segments by using plastic or metal stents. While there remains debate as to if bilateral(or multi-segmental) hepatic drainage is required and/or superior to unilateral drainage, the underlying tenant of draining any persistently opacified bile ducts is paramount to good ERCP practice and good clinical outcomes. Endoscopic therapy for malignant biliary strictures from CCA has advanced to include ablative therapies via ERCP-directed photodynamic therapy(PDT) or radiofrequency ablation(RFA). While ERCP techniques cannot cure CCA, advancements in the field of ERCP have enabled us to improve upon the quality of life of patients with inoperable and incurable disease. ERCP-directed PDT has been used in lieu of brachytherapy to provide neoadjuvant local tumor control in patients with CCA who are awaiting liver transplantation. Lastly, mounting evidence suggests that palliative ERCP-directed PDT, and probably ERCPdirected RFA as well, offer a survival advantage to patients with this difficult-to-treat malignancy.

Tumor-targeted metabolic inhibitor prodrug labelled with cyanine dyes enhances immunoprevention of lung cancer

Recent progress in targeted metabolic therapy of cancer has been limited by the considerable toxicity associated with such drugs.To address this challenge,we developed a smart theranostic prodrug system that combines a fluorophore and an anticancer drug,specifically 6-diazo-5-oxo-L-norleucine(DON),using a thioketal linkage(TK).This system enables imaging,chemotherapy,photodynamic therapy,and on-demand drug release upon radiation exposure.The optimized prodrug,DON-TK-BM3,incorporating cyanine dyes as the fluorophore,displayed potent reactive oxygen species release and efficient tumor cell killing.Unlike the parent drug DON,DON-TK-BM3 exhibited no toxicity toward normal cells.Moreover,DON-TK-BM3 demonstrated high tumor accumulation and reduced side effects,including gastrointestinal toxicity,in mice.This study provides a practical strategy for designing prodrugs of metabolic inhibitors with significant toxicity stemming from their lack of tissue selectivity.

Progress on mid-IR graphene photonics and biochemical applications

Mid-infrared （mid-IR） （2-20 μm） photonics has numerous chemical and biologic ＂fingerprint＂ sensing applications due to characteristic vibrational transitions of molecules in the mid-IR spectral region. Unfortunately, compared to visible light and telecommunication band wavelengths, photonic devices and applications have been difficult to develop at mid-IR wavelengths because of the intrinsic limitation of conventional materials. Breaking a new ground in the mid-IR science and technology calls for revolutionary materials. Graphene, a single atom layer of carbon arranged in a honey-comb lattice, has various promising optical and electrical properties because of its linear dispersion band structure and zero band gap features. In this review article, we discuss recent research develop- ments on mid-IR graphene photonics, in particular ultrafast lasers and photodetectors. Graphene-photonics-based biochemical applications, such as plasmonic sensing, photo- dynamic therapy, and florescence imaging are also reviewed.

A Singlet Oxygen Reservoir Based on Poly-Pyridone and Porphyrin Nanoscale Metal-Organic Framework for Cancer Therapy

Here,a methacrylate-modified pyridone derivative(mPYR)was loaded into a porphyrin nanoscale metal-organic framework(porphyrin-nMOF).Then,the loaded mPYR was further polymerized to obtain poly-pyridone(poly-mPYR)to form poly-mPYR loaded porphyrin-nMOF,which is designated as PLP and used as a reservoir of singlet oxygen(^(1)O_(2)).It was found that PLP could quickly capture^(1)O_(2)in vitro and slowly release^(1)O_(2)in vivo to induce cancer cell death.The release of^(1)O_(2)was light and oxygen independent,and the entire process did not cause intracellular oxygen consumption.PLP also displayed good therapeutic effect in the treatment of both solid tumor and lung metastasis cancer.This strategy of oxygenand light-independent^(1)O_(2)treatment presents great potential for treating refractory cancer.Also,the form of^(1)O_(2)capturing polymer-loaded nMOF expands the biomedical applications of MOFs and polymers,which can be used as a platform for biomedical applications.