Traditional chemotherapy often damages healthy tissues while attacking tumours, leading to severe side effects.

While prodrugs—dormant compounds activated only in specific conditions—offer a safer alternative, their reliance on inconsistent tumour environments (like acidity or enzymes) has limited effectiveness.

External triggers, such as light or heat, have been explored to improve control, but these methods lack the depth and safety needed for deep-seated cancers.

Ultrasound, widely used in imaging, emerged as a promising solution due to its ability to penetrate tissues non-invasively and deliver energy precisely.

However, leveraging ultrasound to chemically activate drugs—rather than just physically disrupt cells—remains a major challenge.

The scientists from Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, tested the approach using nanoparticles loaded with a prodrug (R848-N₃) and a catalyst (riboflavin tetrabutyrate).

When exposed to ultrasound, the nanoparticles released the active drug, which then stimulated immune cells to attack tumours.

In experiments on colon cancer models, the treatment achieved a 99% tumour suppression rate and cured two-thirds of the mice, all without harming healthy tissues.

Key to the breakthrough is the ultrasound’s ability to selectively activate the drug within tumours, leveraging the body’s own molecules like NADH to fuel the reaction.

This precision reduces systemic toxicity, a major challenge in conventional chemotherapy.

“This work opens a new frontier in ultrasound-based medicine,” said Dr. Zhaohui Tang, a corresponding author.

“It’s not just imaging—sound can now ‘switch on’ therapies exactly where needed.”

The team plans to advance the technology toward clinical trials, aiming to adapt it for human cancers.

If successful, this approach could offer a safer, more effective alternative to current treatments.

The study was led by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the University of Science and Technology of China, and Jilin University.

These institutions are globally recognised for innovations in polymer science, nanotechnology, and biomedical engineering.

Funding was provided by China’s National Key R&D Programme and the National Natural Science Foundation.

Source: Science China Press