Embodiments of photoactivatable, lipid-based nanoparticles are disclosed, as well as methods of making and using the nanoparticles. Pharmaceutical compositions including the nanoparticles also are disclosed. The lipid-based nanoparticles include a vesicle wall surrounding a cavity, wherein the vesicle wall includes (i) a lipid bilayer comprising 1,2-bis(tricosa-10,12-diynoyl)-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DC.sub.8,9PC), dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC), and (ii) 2-[1-hexyloxyethyl]-2-devinyl pyropheophorbide-a (HPPH) within the lipid bilayer. The nanoparticles may further include an agent within the cavity.

The present invention generally relates to various photoreactions, including reactions generally based on triplet-triplet annihilation upconversion. One aspect of the present invention is directed to systems and methods for absorbing energy (e.g., from a photon) in a photo sensitizer, transferring that energy by triplet-triplet energy transfer to an annihilator to produce a higher energy state via upconversion, then transferring that energy to cleave a cleavable or other active moiety, for instance, in order to cause the release of a releasable moiety. The energy may be transferred to the moiety via Forster resonance energy transfer. In some cases, these may be contained within a suitable carrier material, for example, a particle or a micelle. Such systems and methods may be used in a variety of applications, including various biological or physical applications. For example, such systems and methods may be useful for delivering drugs or other releasable moieties to regions of the body which may be affected by too much light, such as the eye. Other aspects of the present invention are generally directed to methods for making or using such systems, kits including such systems, or the like.

The present disclosure relates to the modulation of cell activity by sequential release of several biomolecule from a given nanocarrier using a given wavelength. The present disclosure describes a composition for controlled release of biomolecules comprising: a gold nanoparticle; at least two different biomolecules; at least two different oligonucleotides having different melting points, binding said biomolecules to the surface of the gold nanoparticle; wherein the binding is obtainable via hybridization of complementary oligonucleotides; wherein each of the oligonucleotides is a photo-active such that the respective biomolecule is releasable by photo-activation. The composition of the present disclosure may be use in medicine, namely in the treatment of cancer, aging diseases, and accelerated aging syndromes, infectious diseases such as AIDS, epigenetic diseases such as polycystic ovary syndrome, or cardiac diseases, such as cardiac regeneration.

The present invention provides universal immunotherapy compositions useful for targeted treatment of cancers.

Cancer imaging methods and cancer treatment methods using thermotherapy and drug delivery are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, the temperature of heated tissue is determined from radio-frequency data from an ultrasound transducer based upon a change in backscattered energy of acoustic harmonics. In another embodiment, a plurality of nanocarriers containing an anti-tumor medication are administered to a patient, and are excited in a first non-thermal ultrasound mode and/or a second thermal ultrasound mode using an ultrasound source. In yet another embodiment, a plurality of nanoparticles are administered to a patient, then at least some of the nanoparticles are heated along with tissue at a site of a tumor, and a photoacoustic imaging unit is used to determine a temperature of the heated tissue at the site of the tumor.

A gel precursor composition causative of no apprehension about exhibiting cytotoxicity can be made. A method for producing a gel causative of no apprehension about exhibiting cytotoxicity, using the gel precursor composition can be performed. One of the present embodiments is a gel precursor composition including: a biocompatible polymer; a crosslinking agent to be activated by a specific substance; and a photoresponsive compound bound to the specific substance, or encompassing the specific substance.

The present invention relates to a composition for immunotherapy of allergic diseases, comprising house dust mite antigens and hyaluronic acid hydrogels as active ingredients. By using hyaluronic acid as a material, and forming a crosslinking with the house dust mite antigens via a photoinitiator and visible light, it can overcome the disadvantage of easy degradation and simultaneously exploit biocompatible features. Moreover, it can provide a large amount of antigens to immune cells with a single administration, and despite this, it does not induce foreign body reactions, drug reactions, or immune responses, while generating excellent immune tolerance effects. Its safety is outstanding and it does not require repeated injections over a long period. Thus, it is expected to be useful as a preventive or therapeutic agent for allergic diseases induced by house dust mites.

A composition having a pi-pi interaction-constructed organic framework (p-OF). The pi-OF includes a plurality of molecular structures, each molecular structure, including: (a) a centroid core having two spirobifluorene (SF) units, the two SF units forming a rigid biplanar conjugated cruciform-shaped spirobifluorene. the two SF units forming an essentially orthogonal configuration; and (b) a plurality of multijoint fragment units, each unit comprising a 3-dicyanomethylidene)indan-1-one (IC) unit, each IC unit is used as an end group (EG) to each end of the two spirobifluorene (SF) units. Each IC unit is configured to interact via a pi-pi interaction with a neighboring IC unit of an adjacent molecular structure or to interact via a CH-interaction with neighboring aromatic group (R1) of an adjacent molecular structure, or both. The composition also includes a bioactive agent absorbed into the pi-OF.

A hydrogel of which the degradation is accurately controlled can be provided by a photodegradable hydrogel production method, the method comprising the steps of: reacting ?-glucan having a weight average molecular weight of 2000 to 200,000 with a compound represented by formula I to introduce a group represented by formula II into the ?-glucan; oxidizing the ?-glucan having, introduced therein, the group represented by formula II with periodic acid or a periodate salt to introduce an aldehyde group into the ?-glucan; and adding aminated carrageenan gel beads having polydopamine particles embedded therein to a gelling agent which has been prepared by introducing a group represented by formula II and an aldehyde group into ?-glucan, and then causing the crosslinking reaction of the resultant product with a polythiol-type reducing agent to form the hydrogel.

Mucosal patches are disclosed that have a support layer supporting an active layer that has a collagen carbon dot nanocomposite carrying an active agent. The collagen carbon dot nanocomposite is absorbable through a mucosa. The mucosal patches are part of various methods of treatment.