Ultrasound-responsive nanoplatforms for cancer immunotherapy: engineering spatiotemporal immune activation in the tumor microenvironment
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Ultrasound, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen Medical College
- 2Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen Medical College
- 3Department of Internal Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen Medical College
- 4Department of Gynecology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen Medical College
Abstract
Immune checkpoint blockade has reshaped cancer therapy, but durable responses remain limited by insufficient antigen release, poor T-cell infiltration, immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments, and systemic immune-related toxicity. Ultrasound-responsive nanoplatforms provide a spatiotemporally controllable strategy to overcome these barriers by exploiting deep tissue penetration, focal activation, and repeatable external triggering. In this review, we summarize recent experimental advances in sonosensitizer-based and ultrasound-triggered nanoplatforms for cancer immunotherapy. These systems integrate sonodynamic immunogenic cell death, pyroptosis, ferroptosis, necroptosis, cGAS-STING activation, immune checkpoint blockade, mRNA delivery, gas therapy, and tumor microenvironment remodeling to convert immune-cold tumors into immune-responsive lesions. We further discuss cancer type-specific applications in hepatocellular carcinoma, pancreatic cancer, glioblastoma, triple-negative breast cancer, colorectal cancer, bladder cancer, and other solid tumors, emphasizing how ultrasound-responsive designs can be matched to distinct anatomical and immunological barriers. Finally, we highlight key translational challenges, including long-term biosafety, controllable immune activation, ultrasound parameter standardization, scalable manufacturing, and clinically compatible combination strategies. Ultrasound-responsive nanoplatforms are emerging not merely as drug carriers, but as programmable immune-engineering systems capable of coordinating when, where, and how antitumor immunity is activated within the tumor microenvironment.
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BibTeX
@article{zhang2026ultrasoundresponsive,
title = {{Ultrasound-responsive nanoplatforms for cancer immunotherapy: engineering spatiotemporal immune activation in the tumor microenvironment}},
author = {Qiulan Zhang and Tao Wei and Zhenhao Lan and Guojin Lin and Meihong Xu and Xiaoyan Li and Yanni Bao},
journal = {Frontiers in Immunology},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fimmu.2026.1988247},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2026.1988247/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Ultrasound-responsive nanoplatforms for cancer immunotherapy: engineering spatiotemporal immune activation in the tumor microenvironment
AU - Qiulan Zhang
AU - Tao Wei
AU - Zhenhao Lan
AU - Guojin Lin
AU - Meihong Xu
AU - Xiaoyan Li
AU - Yanni Bao
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/19
JO - Frontiers in Immunology
DO - 10.3389/fimmu.2026.1988247
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2026.1988247/full
AB - Immune checkpoint blockade has reshaped cancer therapy, but durable responses remain limited by insufficient antigen release, poor T-cell infiltration, immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments, and systemic immune-related toxicity. Ultrasound-responsive nanoplatforms provide a spatiotemporally controllable strategy to overcome these barriers by exploiting deep tissue penetration, focal activation, and repeatable external triggering. In this review, we summarize recent experimental advances in sonosensitizer-based and ultrasound-triggered nanoplatforms for cancer immunotherapy. These systems integrate sonodynamic immunogenic cell death, pyroptosis, ferroptosis, necroptosis, cGAS-STING activation, immune checkpoint blockade, mRNA delivery, gas therapy, and tumor microenvironment remodeling to convert immune-cold tumors into immune-responsive lesions. We further discuss cancer type-specific applications in hepatocellular carcinoma, pancreatic cancer, glioblastoma, triple-negative breast cancer, colorectal cancer, bladder cancer, and other solid tumors, emphasizing how ultrasound-responsive designs can be matched to distinct anatomical and immunological barriers. Finally, we highlight key translational challenges, including long-term biosafety, controllable immune activation, ultrasound parameter standardization, scalable manufacturing, and clinically compatible combination strategies. Ultrasound-responsive nanoplatforms are emerging not merely as drug carriers, but as programmable immune-engineering systems capable of coordinating when, where, and how antitumor immunity is activated within the tumor microenvironment.
SN - 1664-3224
ER -