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Research Article | Open Access | Online First

Donor–Acceptor–Donor Structured Dyes with Balanced Photothermal Conversion Efficiency and Fluorescence Quantum Yield for Near-Infrared–II Mild-Temperature Photothermal Therapy

Xuan Sun1,§, Zuyuan Zhang1,§, Chunbai Xiang3,§, Tianhe Qiao1, Xin Wang1( ), Gongcheng Ma4( ), Dan Ding2( )
The First Department of Breast Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Key Laboratory of cancer Prevention and Therapy, Tianjin’s Clinical Research Center for Cancer and Key Laboratory of Breast Cancer Prevention and Therapy, Tianjin Medical University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300060, China
Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Engineering & Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary Science Center, MOE Key Laboratory of Bioactive Materials, and college of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, China
Key Laboratory of Green Chemistry and Technology (Ministry of Education), College of Chemistry, Sichuan University Chengdu 610064, China
School of Life Science and Technology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang 453003, China

§These authors contributed equally to this work.

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Abstract

Effective mild-temperature photothermal therapy (MTPTT) requires photothermal agents with high photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) and balanced fluorescence quantum yield to enable efficient tumor treatment while minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissues. In this study, we designed donor–acceptor–donor structured dyes, 4,4’-((6,7-di(thiophen-2-yl)-[1,2,5]thiadiazolo[3,4-g]quinoxaline-4,9-diyl)bis(thiophene-5,2-diyl))bis(N,N-bis(4-methoxyphenyl)aniline) (IT-STPA) and 4,4’-((6,7-di(furan-2-yl)-[1,2,5]thiadiazolo[3,4-g]quinoxaline-4,9-diyl)bis(thiophene-5,2-diyl))bis(N,N-bis(4-methoxyphenyl)aniline) (IT-OTPA), featuring furan-modified thiadiazolo-quinoxaline for near-infrared–II (NIR-II) fluorescence imaging and enhanced PCE. The furan and thiophene modifications promoted aggregation-induced emission, resulting in strong fluorescence emission (1 000–1 400 nm) while maintaining a high PCE of 48.5%. IT-OTPA was encapsulated into nanoparticles for improved aqueous dispersion and combined with the HSP70 inhibitor apoptozole (APZ) to form OTAPZ nanoparticles. The efficacy of this combination was evaluated both in vitro and in vivo, showing efficient tumor targeting and effective MTPTT under NIR laser irradiation. This study presents a promising approach for enhancing MTPTT through balanced photothermal and fluorescence properties, offering new possibilities for cancer treatment.

Keywords

mild-temperature photothermal therapyphotothermal conversion efficiencynear-infrared–II imagingheat shock protein

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Nano Biomedicine and Engineering
DOI: 10.26599/NBE.2025.9290120
Cite this article:
Sun X, Zhang Z, Xiang C, et al. Donor–Acceptor–Donor Structured Dyes with Balanced Photothermal Conversion Efficiency and Fluorescence Quantum Yield for Near-Infrared–II Mild-Temperature Photothermal Therapy. Nano Biomedicine and Engineering, 2025, https://doi.org/10.26599/NBE.2025.9290120

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Received: 13 February 2025
Revised: 03 March 2025
Accepted: 07 March 2025
Published: 09 April 2025
© The Author(s) 2025.

This is an open-access article distributed under  the  terms  of  the  Creative  Commons  Attribution  4.0 International  License (CC BY) (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which  permits  unrestricted  use,  distribution,  and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
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