SnSe Nanosheets Mimic Lactate Dehydrogenase to Reverse Tumor Acid Microenvironment Metabolism for Enhancement of Tumor Therapy

The acidic tumor microenvironment (TME) is unfriendly to the activity and function of immune cells in the TME. Here, we report inorganic nanozymes (i.e., SnSe NSs) that mimic the catalytic activity of lactate dehydrogenase to degrade lactate to pyruvate, contributing to the metabolic treatment of tumors. As found in this study, SnSe NSs successfully decreased lactate levels in cells and tumors, as well as reduced tumor acidity. This is associated with activation of the immune response of T cells, thus alleviating the immunosuppressive environment of the TME. More importantly, the nanozyme successfully inhibited tumor growth in mutilate mouse tumor models. Thus, SnSe NSs show a promising result in lactate depletion and tumor suppression, which exemplifies its potential strategy in targeting lactate for metabolic therapy.