Bacteria-enhanced graphene oxide nanoparticles for triple-action tumor eradication

Modern cancer treatments have evolved beyond traditional chemotherapy to include targeted approaches such as immunotherapy, radiation therapy, and photothermal therapy. Graphene oxide (GO), known for its biocompatibility, high photothermal conversion efficiency, and large surface area, has emerged as a promising material for both drug delivery and thermal-based tumor destruction. However, its clinical application remains limited due to challenges in dispersibility and large-scale production.

To overcome these limitations, Professor Eijiro Miyako and his research team from the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) have developed a novel GO nanocomposite enhanced with bacterial components. This paper was made available online on March 21, 2025, and will be published in Volume 238, Issue 5 of the journal Carbon on May 5, 2025. The study highlights how bacterial properties improve GO’s effectiveness in cancer therapy. Certain bacteria naturally stimulate immune responses and enhance dispersibility of GO due to their amphiphilic cellular components.

Using this concept, the researchers designed a GO-based nanocomposite containing Cutibacterium acnes (CA) bacterial components and the chemotherapy drug camptothecin (CPT). These nanoparticles eradicate tumors through a three-pronged mechanism: bacterial components activate the immune system, CPT delivers localized chemotherapy, and GO facilitates photothermal therapy.

“CPT delivers localized chemotherapy, GO intensifies heat-based tumor destruction, and CA components activate immune defenses. Together, these effects provide a highly promising cancer treatment,” explains Dr. Miyako.

The nanocomposites were prepared by sonicating a mixture of GO, CA bacterial components, and CPT in a cell culture medium. The resulting particles, averaging 53 nm in size, were stabilized by a bacterial coating, improving their dispersibility and biological compatibility. When injected into mice with colorectal cancer, the nanoparticles preferentially accumulated in tumors while sparing other organs due to the enhanced permeability and retention effect. Even without laser activation, they effectively suppressed tumor growth by leveraging the combined effects of chemotherapy and immune activation.

Further enhancing treatment efficacy, the researchers applied a low-power laser (0.8 W) for five minutes, heating the tumors to 50 °C—enough to destroy cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. After five laser treatments, the mice showed complete tumor eradication and full recovery. Analysis using qPCR confirmed that immune cells, including T cells, B cells, neutrophils, macrophages, and natural killer cells, were activated, demonstrating a strong immune response driven by CA components.

Unlike conventional GO modification methods, which involve complex chemical processing, this bacterial-based approach offers a cost-effective and scalable alternative. “Cancer is a highly progressive and complex disease, requiring a multidimensional approach to fight it,” says Dr. Miyako. “The proposed approach is cost-effective, requires minimal resources, such as bacterial culture media, and is easily scalable for mass production via a simple single-step sonication process.”

This study presents a promising strategy for enhancing GO-based cancer therapies, providing a simple and scalable method for developing multifunctional nanoparticles with potent anti-cancer effects.

 

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Reference

Title of original paper:	Hybrid Nanoarchitectonics with Bacterial Component-Integrated Graphene Oxide for Cancer Photothermo-Chemo-Immunotherapy
Authors:	Soudamini Chintalapati, Eijiro Miyako*
Journal:	Carbon
DOI:	10.1016/j.carbon.2025.120252

 

 

About Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Japan

Founded in 1990 in Ishikawa prefecture, the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) was the first independent national graduate school in Japan. Now, after 30 years of steady progress, JAIST has become one of Japan’s top-ranking universities. JAIST strives to foster capable leaders with a state-of-the-art education system where diversity is key; about 40% of its alumni are international students. The university has a unique style of graduate education based on a carefully designed coursework-oriented curriculum to ensure that its students have a solid foundation on which to carry out cutting-edge research. JAIST also works closely with both local and overseas communities by promoting industry–academia collaborative research.  

 

About Professor Eijiro Miyako from Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Japan

Eijiro Miyako is a Professor at the Materials Chemistry Frontiers Research Area, Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. He has been a visiting scientist at Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) (France) and Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). He also served as the Senior Researcher at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Japan. His research interests are in the areas of Bioengineering, Materials Chemistry, Nanotechnology, and Nanomedicine. Dr. Miyako received his Ph.D. in Chemical Systems and Engineering from Kyushu University (Japan) in 2006. He has received research prizes and awards, such as the PCCP Prize in the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Research Encouragement Award in The Fullerenes, Nanotubes and Graphene Research Society.

 

Funding information

This work was supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A) (Grant number 23H00551), JSPS KAKENHI Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Pioneering) (Grant number 22K18440), the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) for Adaptable and Seamless Technology Transfer Program through target-driven R&D (Grant Number JPMJTR22U1), and JST Program for co-creating startup ecosystem (Grant Number JPMJSF2318). We also thank Mr. Mitsuru Kawahara (JAIST) for his dedicated support for the animal experiments.

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