https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7924-3632
Figures & data
Figure 1 Schematic illustration of the microalgae-based materials used to treat oxygen deficiency aggravated diseases (ODAD).
Table 1 Characteristics of Commonly Used Microalgae and Their Medical Applications
Figure 2 Schematic illustration of the synergistic therapeutic effect of calcium phosphate-engineered photosynthetic microalgae. The oxygen produced by Chlorella vulgaris can alleviate the local hypoxic conditions in tumors. Normoxia can increase the effect of radiotherapy, and chlorophyll released from Chlorella vulgaris can produce reactive oxygen species under the action of laser irradiation. This can synergistically induce the death of tumor cells. Reproduced from Zhong D, Li W, Hua S, et al. Calcium phosphate engineered photosynthetic microalgae to combat hypoxic-tumor by in-situ modulating hypoxiaand cascade radio-phototherapy. Theranostics. 2021;11(8):3580–3594. Copyright (2021), Ivyspring. Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Citation68
Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the PFC hybrid material. Oxygen generated by Chlorella can be collected by PFC to maintain a high concentration around the photosensitizer, which can continuously alleviate the hypoxic conditions of tumor tissues. The relief of tumor hypoxia can enhance the PDT effect mediated by singlet oxygen. J Biomaterials. Feb 2021;269:120621. Copyright (2020), Elsevier. Reproduced from Wang H, Guo Y, Wang C, et al. Light-controlled oxygen production and collection for sustainable photodynamic therapy in tumor hypoxia. 605Biomaterials. 2021;269:120621. doi:10.1016/j.biomaterials.2020.120621. Copyright 2021, with permission from Elsevier.Citation36
Figure 4 Overview of C. reinhardtii-powered microswimmers for drug delivery. (A) Microalgae were connected to positively charged functional particles via electrostatic interactions. (B) Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of the hybrid microswimmer system. (C) Trajectory of the microswimmer system under the influence of a uniform magnetic field (26 mT). The red line indicated the propulsion trajectories of an algal microswimmer. Scale bars: 20 μm. Reproduced from Yasa O, Erkoc P, Alapan Y, Sitti M. Microalga-powered microswimmers toward active cargo delivery. Adv Mater. 2018;30(45):e1804130. Copyright (2018), John Wiley and Sons.Citation27
Table 2 Summary of Research Conducted Using Microalgae for Cancer Therapy
Figure 5 Microalgae-gel patch for chronic wound healing. (A) Schematic illustration of the microalgae-gel patch for promoting chronic wound healing via the process of light-triggered oxygen production. (B) Image of the microalgae-gel patch. (C) Application of microalgae-gel patches. (D) Images of the wound healing process in different groups. Red circles mark the wound areas in the diabetic mouse (DM)-control and DM-alga-gel patch (AGP) groups on day 12. (E) Schematic diagram of the wound healing proportion. (F) Summary of wound healing time. **P < 0.01. The two groups are compared with one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). From Chen H, Cheng Y, Tian J, et al. Dissolved oxygen from microalgae-gel patch promotes chronic wound healing in diabetes. Sci Adv. 2020;6(20):eaba4311. © The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee AAAS. Distributed under a CCBY-NC 4.0 license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/”. Reprinted with permission from AAAS.Citation28
Figure 6 Application of microalgae in ischemic heart disease. (A) SEM image of cyanobacteria and cardiomyocytes. (B and C) Dead and live cell staining for cardiomyocytes. (D) Thermal images of rat hearts in different groups recorded before and after treatment. From Cohen JE, Goldstone AB, Paulsen MJ, et al. An innovative biologic system for photon-powered myocardium in the ischemic heart. Sci Adv.2017;3(6):e1603078. © The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee AAAS. Distributed under a CCBY-NC 4.0 license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/”. Reprinted with permission from AAAS.Citation14
