A analysis workforce led by Professor Yaping Li from the Chinese language Academy of Sciences‘ Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica and Professor Pengcheng Zhang of ShanghaiTech College developed a novel method to native neoadjuvant immunotherapy, as detailed in Nature Communications.
The efficacy of immunotherapy for triple-negative breast most cancers (TNBC) relies upon closely on the infiltration of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) into the tumor. Regardless of the approval of neoadjuvant chemotherapy and immunotherapy for superior TNBC, therapy outcomes stay suboptimal, doubtlessly attributable to systemic therapy-induced lymphatic system dysfunction and tumor activation of other immune checkpoints.
The researchers developed an injectable hydrogel, Abe-NF(g), composed of peptide-NLG919 prodrug nanofibers loaded with the cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitor Abemaciclib (Abe). Following native injection, the hydrogel remained on the tumor website for no less than seven days, serving as a sustained reservoir for Abe and NLG919. This method considerably improved the drug distribution ratio between tumors and demanding organs.
The extended tumor publicity to Abe induced immunogenic cell dying, enhanced dendritic cell maturation, activated traditional macrophages, and stimulated CTLs. Decreased systemic publicity minimized the incidence of lymphopenia and hepatic toxicity.
Moreover, whereas Abe elevated the expression of the enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1), the sustained launch of NLG919 inhibited IDO1 exercise, lowering kynurenine synthesis and regulatory T-cell activation. A single injection of Abe-NF(g) enhanced CTL tumor infiltration and effector reminiscence T cell formation, successfully lowering TNBC recurrence and pulmonary metastasis.
This research demonstrates progress in native neoadjuvant immunotherapy for TNBC, reaching improved efficacy with decrease toxicity. The injectable hydrogel platform, primarily based on prodrug fibrous nanomedicine, gives potential for mixture therapies to realize synergistic results.
Journal Reference:
Zhu, B., et al. (2025) Injectable supramolecular hydrogel co-loading abemaciclib/NLG919 for neoadjuvant immunotherapy of triple-negative breast most cancers. Nature Communications. doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55904-z
