Bismuth nanoclusters on nitrogen-doped porous carbon nanoenzyme for cancer therapy.

Among the emerging cancer therapeutic methods, nanocatalytic therapy through the rational design of nanozymes is considered to be a promising strategy. However, high-performance nanozymes with the ability to catalyze the production of toxic substances to efficiently kill cancer cells are still highly desired. Herein, we fabricate bismuth nanoclusters loaded on nitrogen-doped porous carbon (Bi-NC) as a nanozyme for cancer therapy. The Bi-NC nanozyme displays both peroxidase (POD) and glutathione oxidase (GSHOx) biomimetic enzymatic activities, especially in a tumor microenvironment (TME), which catalyzes the production of hydroxyl radicals (·OH) and depletes antioxidant glutathione (GSH), simultaneously. Moreover, Bi-NC exhibits good photothermal conversion performance under near-infrared light irradiation. After surface modification with hyaluronic acid (HA) to improve the dispersity of nanoparticles and their accumulation in tumor tissues, Bi-NC@HA exhibits remarkable antitumor effects through the synergistic effect of catalytic and photothermal therapy. This work provides a new pathway for designing high-performance nanozymes for cancer catalytic therapy.

Self-administered acupressure and exercise for patients with osteoarthritis: A randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: Knee osteoarthritis is a prevalent degenerative joint disease and seriously affects the athletic abilities of middle-aged and elderly patients. Acupressure is a traditional non-pharmacological intervention that promotes blood circulation and muscle activity. Self-administrated acupressure and exercise can be potential management for knee osteoarthritis. DESIGN: It is a randomized and controlled trial for knee osteoarthritis self-treatment. SETTINGS: Cangzhou Hospital. INTERVENTIONS: 221 patients with knee osteoarthritis were recruited and randomly divided into 4 groups: control group (n = 55), exercise group (n = 56), acupressure group (n = 55) and exercise & acupressure group (n = 55). In the first eight weeks, corresponding training courses were provided to different groups of patients. The patients were asked to carry out their own corresponding interventions for 16 weeks. The patient's condition was evaluated in the sixteenth week. MAIN MEASURES: The Western Ontario and McMaster Universities global scores of knee osteoarthritis patients were assessed at the 8th and 16th week of our trial. RESULTS: Self-administered acupressure and exercise significantly decreased visual analogue scale (3.75 ± 1.89 versus 2.93 ± 1.73, p < 0.05), pain (7.6 ± 2.8 versus 4.8 ± 2.7, p < 0.05), stiffness (3.75 ± 1.89 versus 2.93 ± 1.73, p < 0.05) at the 16th week (p < 0.05) in patients with knee osteoarthritis compared to other intervention. The combination of acupressure and exercise also improved the range of motion (114.4 ± 11.5 versus 120.4 ± 11.9, p < 0.05) and walk speed (1.48 ± 0.48 versus 1.76 ± 0.50, p < 0.05) of osteoarthritis patients (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Self-administrated exercise and acupressure alleviate the arthritic symptoms (swelling, pain, joint dysfunction and joint deformities) and improve the joint functions, supporting its potential use in the clinical management for osteoarthritis.