Metformin glycyrrhetinic acid binary injectable hydrogel for synergistic tumor immunotherapy via spatiotemporal microenvironment remodeling.

ABSTRACT: The immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, orchestrated by tumor cells through multifaceted immune evasion mechanisms, presents a significant challenge to the coordinated regulation of immunocytes. To overcome these limitations, we synthesized metformin glycyrrhetinic acid salt (Met-GA), which exhibits a 189-fold increase in anti-tumor potency compared to free metformin. An injectable Met-GA hydrogel (Met-GA-H) was formed through a "heating-cooling" cycling. To enable in situ gelation at the tumor site, Fe₃O₄ NPs were incorporated into the Met-GA suspension. This combination leverages Fe₃O₄ NPs-mediated photothermal triggering to achieve in situ gelation while enabling multitiered immune cell reprogramming, resulting in a multifunctional hydro

SUBMITTER: Ouyang A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12813322 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature