Endogenous Reactive Oxygen Species-Triggered Morphology Transformation for Enhanced Cooperative Interaction with Mitochondria

J Am Chem Soc. 2019 May 8;141(18):7235-7239. doi: 10.1021/jacs.8b07727. Epub 2019 Apr 26.

Abstract

The morphology controlled molecular assemblies play vital roles in biological systems. Here we present endogenous reactive oxygen species (ROS)-triggered morphology transformation of polymer-peptide conjugates (PPCs) for cooperative interaction with mitochondria, exhibiting high tumor therapeutic efficacy. The PPCs are composed of (i) a β-sheet-forming peptide KLVFF conjugated with poly(ethylene glycol) through ROS-cleavable thioketal, (ii) a mitochondria-targeting cytotoxic peptide KLAK, and (iii) a poly(vinyl alcohol) backbone. The self-assembled PPCs nanoparticles can enter cells and target mitochondria. Because of overgenerated ROS around mitochondria in most cancer cells, the thioketal linker can be cleaved, leading to transformation from nanoparticles to fibrous nanostructures. As a result, the locational nanofibers with exposure of KLAK exhibit enhanced multivalent cooperative interactions with mitochondria, which causes selective cytotoxicity against cancer cells and powerful tumor suppression efficacy in vivo. As the first example of ROS-triggered intracellular transformation, the locational assembly strategy in vivo may provide a new insight for disease diagnosis and therapy through enhanced interaction with targeting site.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / chemistry
  • Antineoplastic Agents / metabolism*
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Proliferation / drug effects
  • Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor
  • HeLa Cells
  • Humans
  • Mice
  • Mitochondria / chemistry
  • Mitochondria / metabolism*
  • Neoplasms, Experimental / diagnostic imaging
  • Neoplasms, Experimental / drug therapy
  • Optical Imaging
  • Peptides / chemistry
  • Peptides / metabolism*
  • Peptides / pharmacology
  • Polyvinyl Alcohol / chemistry
  • Polyvinyl Alcohol / metabolism*
  • Polyvinyl Alcohol / pharmacology
  • Reactive Oxygen Species / chemistry
  • Reactive Oxygen Species / metabolism*

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Peptides
  • Reactive Oxygen Species
  • Polyvinyl Alcohol