Teaching Integration Innovation — Design of “Functional Nanomaterials Mediated Photodynamic Anti-tumor” Comprehensive Experiment

Using scientific research as a link, we have transformed cutting-edge research findings into experimental teaching projects and designed a comprehensive experiment of "functional nanomaterials mediated photodynamic anti-tumor". In this study, A novel nanoparticle encapsulating KillerRed gene into Zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) was synthesised by a one-step method. The prepared nanomaterials (PLL/pKillerRed@ZIF-8) delivered pKillerRed into cells to achieve genetically-encoded fluorescent protein expression. As a new type of biological photoensitizer, KillerRed protein was applied in controlled photodynamic therapy (PDT) against tumor. The morphology and properties of PLL/pKillerRed@ZIF-8 were studied using scanning electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering and raman spectroscopy. The results showed that PLL/pKillerRed@ZIF-8 exhibited favorable characteristics, including positive charged nanostructure, hydrodynamic diameters of 78 nm, excellent serum tolerance and high gene delivery efficiency. Furthermore, KillerRed was photoactivated locally, followed by generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) to kill tumor cells. This experiment is characterized by its innovative content, complete research process, consistent and reliable results, thereby providing a new valuable insight for experimental design and practice about " tumor photodynamic ablation".