Molecular Engineering Boosts Photon-Activated Immunotherapy for Prostate Cancer Through Concurrent Pyroptosis and cGAS-STING Pathway Activation.

Cheng Zhang, Xiaolan Yin, Jeongyeon Hong, Qixian Chen, Weijie Chi, Jingyun Wang, Juyoung Yoon, Haidong Li

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Cheng ZhangCancer Hospital of Dalian University of Technology, State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, MOE Key Laboratory of Bio-Intelligent Manufacturing, School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, China.

Xiaolan YinCancer Hospital of Dalian University of Technology, State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, MOE Key Laboratory of Bio-Intelligent Manufacturing, School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, China.

Jeongyeon HongDepartment of Chemistry and Nanoscience, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea.

Qixian ChenInnovation Center of Yangtze River Delta, Zhejiang University, Jiaxing, Zhejiang, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3091-671X

Weijie ChiSchool of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hainan University, Haikou, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1776-0025

Jingyun WangCancer Hospital of Dalian University of Technology, State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, MOE Key Laboratory of Bio-Intelligent Manufacturing, School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, China.

Juyoung YoonDepartment of Chemistry and Nanoscience, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1728-3970

Haidong LiCancer Hospital of Dalian University of Technology, State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, MOE Key Laboratory of Bio-Intelligent Manufacturing, School of Bioengineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2721-0337

Funding

Hainan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China 226JCQN0965Korean government (MSIT) 2022R1A2C3005420LiaoNing Revitalization Talents Program XLYC2503083National Key Research and Development Program of China 2023YFB3810300National Natural Science Foundation of China 22378050National Natural Science Foundation of China 22378051the Ministry of Science and ICT RS-2024-00407093

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Prostate cancer therapy is often limited by metastasis, drug resistance, and systemic toxicity. Photodynamic immunotherapy (PDIT) offers a promising alternative, yet its efficacy depends on photosensitizers that can simultaneously generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and activate antitumor immunity. Herein, three thiophene (T) dyes based on triphenylamine (D) and N-ethyl-benzoselenazolium iodide (Se) (DTSe)-based photosensitizers were molecularly engineered by modulating the π-conjugated structure. Incorporation of a carbazole unit affords DZTSe with suppressed fluorescence, enlarged Huang-Rhys factor, reduced singlet-triplet energy gap, and prolonged triplet-state lifetime, resulting in enhanced ROS generation. Notably, DZTSe exhibits multi-organelle localization in the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria, concurrently inducing pyroptosis and activating the cGAS-STING pathway. This dual stress-immune activation reprograms the tumor microenvironment and enables effective eradication of primary tumors and suppression of distant lesions in vivo, providing a molecular blueprint for immune-activating photosensitizers.

Indexed as

Antineoplastic AgentsImmunotherapyMembrane ProteinsNucleotidyltransferasesPhotosensitizing AgentsProstatic NeoplasmsPyroptosisAnimalscGAS-STING Signaling PathwayCyclic Guanosine Monophosphate-Adenosine Monophosphate SynthaseHumansMaleMicePhotochemotherapyPhotonsReactive Oxygen SpeciesAntineoplastic AgentscGAS protein, humanCyclic Guanosine Monophosphate-Adenosine Monophosphate SynthaseMembrane ProteinsNucleotidyltransferasesPhotosensitizing AgentsReactive Oxygen SpeciesSTING ProteincGAS‐STING pathwayimmune responsephotodynamic immunotherapyprostate cancerpyroptosis pathway

Identifiers

PMID42489176

DOI10.1002/anie.4883627

PMCPMC13592311

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.