Photodynamic therapy (
PDT) has long been recognized to be a promising approach for
cancer treatment. However, the high
oxygen dependency of conventional
PDT dramatically impairs its overall therapeutic efficacy, especially in hypoxic solid
tumors. Exploration of distinctive
PDT strategy involving both high-performance less-
oxygen-dependent
photosensitizers (PSs) and prominent drug delivery system is an appealing yet significantly challenging task. Herein, a precise nuclear targeting
PDT protocol based on type-I PSs with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) characteristics is fabricated for the first time. Of the two synthesized AIE PSs, TTFMN is demonstrated to exhibit superior AIE property and stronger type-I
reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation efficiency owing to the introduction of
tetraphenylethylene and smaller singlet-triplet energy gap, respectively. With the aid of a lysosomal
acid-activated TAT-
peptide-modified amphiphilic polymer poly(lactic acid)12k-poly(ethylene glycol)5k-succinic
anhydride-modified TAT, the corresponding TTFMN-loaded nanoparticles accompanied with
acid-triggered nuclear targeting peculiarity can quickly accumulate in the
tumor site, effectively generate type-I ROS in the nuclear region and significantly suppress the
tumor growth under white light irradiation with minimized systematic toxicity. This delicate "Good Steel Used in the Blade" tactic significantly maximizes the
PDT efficacy and offers a conceptual while practical paradigm for optimized
cancer treatment in further translational medicine.