NIR-II emissive nanoprobe for non-invasive monitoring of liver fibrosis and in-situ ratiometric visualization of NO gas-based therapy process

A smart ratiometric visualization platform for simultaneous liver fibrosis diagnosis and therapeutic evaluation was proposed through integrating NaYF4:Gd/Yb/Er@@mSiO2 nanocomposites and light induced NO releasing molecular (RBS), offering a new imaging strategy for non-invasive accurate monitoring and ratiometric visualization of therapeutic effect of liver fibrosis. [Display omitted] •Novel ratiometric NIR-II probe for imaging of reversing process of liver fibrosis.•NIR light triggered controllable NO release for reversing liver fibrosis.•Non-invasive NIR-II optical diagnosis of liver fibrosis by endogenous pigment. Timely detecting the progression and therapeutic effect of non-alcoholic liver disease is a great challenge due to lacking suitable non-invasive imaging methods. Herein, a novel theranostic nanoplatform based on lanthanide nanorods integrated with photo-triggered NO releasing molecule (NaYF4:Gd/Yb/Er@mSiO2-RBS) is designed for simultaneous diagnosis of liver fibrosis and second near infrared (NIR-II) ratiometric fluorescence imaging of the NO gas-based therapy of liver fibrosis. The mice with liver fibrosis present bright NIR-II emission (1000–1400 nm) via endogenous pigment secreted in liver fibrosis area under 808 nm laser excitation, enabling non-invasive diagnosis of liver fibrosis. In addition, the nanoplatform presents efficient NO gas release for therapy of liver fibrosis and 1532 nm emission activated by 980 nm laser. Importantly, after NO gas therapy, NIR-II fluorescent signal of the endogenous pigment was decreased, while the fluorescent signal around 1532 nm was increased, leading to the specific ratiometric NIR-II imaging of the therapy process with high specificity. Thus, the developed theranostic nanoprobe provided a powerful tool for timely NIR-II ratiometric detecting the progression and therapeutic effect of liver disease.