Fluorinated albumin nanocages dually target CAFs and tumor cells to potentiate bladder cancer chemoimmunotherapy

  • J Control Release. 2025 Sep 17:387:114246. doi: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2025.114246.
Zhijun Miao  1 Anan Xu  2 Gang Shen  1 Siyi Tang  2 Jie Luo  2 Jiajian Yang  1 Zhe Chen  3 Jinxian Pu  4 Tao Yang  5
Affiliations
  • 1. Department of Urology, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China.
  • 2. College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Suzhou Medical College, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China.
  • 3. College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Suzhou Medical College, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 4. Department of Urology, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 5. College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of Otolaryngology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Suzhou Medical College, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China; State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Protection, and School of Radiation Medicine and Protection, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China. Electronic address: [email protected].
Abstract

Immunogenic cell death (ICD) induced by chemotherapeutics holds promise for Cancer therapy, but limited drug penetration across the bladder mucosa and an immune-excluded tumor microenvironment (TME) have hindered success in bladder Cancer. Here, we develop fluorinated albumin nanocages as transmucosal delivery vesicles that concurrently target cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and tumor cells to potentiate chemoimmunotherapy. Surface fluorination enables mucosal penetration, while recognition of secreted protein acidic and cysteine-rich (SPARC) protein ensures selective uptake by CAFs and tumor cells. Encapsulated chemotherapeutics enhance ICD through inhibition of the Bcl-2 pathway, promoting tumor cell death. Simultaneous CAF disruption reduces stromal fibrosis, facilitating anti-PD-L1 antibody delivery and T-cell infiltration. This dual-targeting strategy synergizes ICD with immune checkpoint blockade to eradicate bladder tumors by recruiting cytotoxic T cells and suppressing immunosuppressive phenotypes. Ex vivo studies in freshly resected human bladder tumors further validated the translational potential. Our findings highlight the fluorinated albumin nanocages as a versatile transmucosal platform to remodel the tumor-stroma axis and amplify chemoimmunotherapy in bladder Cancer.

Keywords
Bladder cancer; Cancer-associated fibroblasts; Chemo-immunotherapy; Fluorinated albumin nanocages; Transmucosal delivery.
Products