Piezo-catalytic immunotherapy: mechanisms and feasibility in cancer treatment

Abstract

Over the past decade, immunotherapy has revolutionized the clinical management of numerous cancer types. However, only a subset of patients derives long-term durable tumor control from it. Intriguingly, several emerging therapeutic strategies harnessing reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated immunogenic cell death (ICD) hold promise for enabling precision immunotherapy in cancer, with sonodynamic therapy emerging as a notable example. The utilization of piezoelectric materials as sonosensitizers can effectively enhance ROS production, thereby augmenting the efficacy of ICD-induced immunotherapy. Additionally, electrical stimulation generated by the piezoelectric effect can further induce immune response activation and necroptosis, achieving a synergistic effect in piezo-catalytic immunotherapy. Herein, we will systematically review the pathways and potential mechanisms underlying piezo-catalytic immunotherapy, offering novel insights for the exploration of cancer immunotherapy strategies.