Facile synthesis of Bi₂S₃-MoS₂ heterogeneous nanoagent as dual functional radiosensitizer for triple negative breast cancer theranostics

The radioresistance of tumor cells is considered to be a major factor responsible for the clinical failure of radiotherapy. Instead of simply increasing the radiation dose, effective elevation the tumor radiosensitivity is an alternative strategy for successful cancer treatment. Here, we report a facile solvothermal protocol to synthesize the rod-shaped heterogeneous Bi₂S₃-MoS₂ nanoparticles (BMNPs), which could serve as an efficient nano-rediosensitizer with dual roles, possessing large X-ray attenuation coefficient while satisfactory heating inductive property under near-infrared (NIR) exposure. Therefore, it could induce synergetic effect to decrease the quasi-threshold X-ray dose from 1.39 Gy to 0.92 Gy, and the sensitivity enhancement ratio can be improved 17.9% (from 0.95 to 1.12). The enhanced radiosensitization by BMNPs may be attributed to the promoted tumor oxygenation and reactive oxygen species (ROS) induced DNA damage, which can deteriorate the self-repairing capability of cancer cells. Moreover, by injection of the as-prepared BMNPs into tumor-bearing mice, the tumor location can be accurately observed via the computed tomography and photoacoustic (CT-PA) imaging. These properties highly feature BMNPs as a dual modal radiosensitizer for imaging guided synergetic theranostics of triple-negative breast cancer and also inhibiting metastasis. Overall, the work provides an alternative strategy for tumor radiosensitization and has a significant impact on the future clinical translation.