Precise Design of Atomically Dispersed Fe, Pt Dinuclear Catalysts and Their Synergistic Application for Tumor Catalytic Therapy

Recently, extending single-atom catalysts from mono- to binary sites has been proved to be a promising way to realize more efficient chemical catalytic processes. In this work, atomically dispersed Fe, Pt dinuclear catalysts ((Fe, Pt) sA -N-C) with an ca. 2.38 A distance for Fe, (Fe-N-3) and Pt, (Pt-N-4) could be precisely controlled via a novel secondary-doping strategy. In response to tumor microenvironments, the Fe-N-3/Pt-N-4 moieties exhibited synergistic catalytic performance for tumor catalytic therapy. Due to its beneficial microstructure and abundant active sites, the Fe-N-3 moiety effectively initiated the intratumoral Fenton-like reaction to release a large amount of toxic hydroxyl radicals (*OH), which further induced tumor cell apoptosis. Meanwhile, the bonded PtN4 moiety could also enhance the Fenton-like activity of the Fe-N-3 moiety up to 128.8% by modulating the 3d electronic orbitals of isolated Fe-N-3 sites. In addition, the existence of amorphous carbon revealed high photothermal conversion efficiency when exposed to an 808 nm laser, which synergistically achieved an effective oncotherapy outcome. Therefore, the as-obtained (Fe, Pt) sA -N-C-FA-PEG has promising potential in the bio-nanomedicine field for inhibiting tumor cell growth in vitro and in vivo.

Automated summary

In this study, atomically dispersed Fe, Pt dinuclear catalysts were synthesized and exhibited synergistic catalytic performance in tumor microenvironments. The Fe-N-3 moiety effectively initiated the Fenton reaction and induced tumor cell apoptosis, while the bonded PtN4 moiety enhanced the catalytic activity of Fe-N-3 by modulating its electronic orbitals. Additionally, the presence of amorphous carbon showed high photothermal conversion efficiency, achieving effective cancer therapy.