Fig. 2: The injectable hydrogel empowers sustained KYNase release and Kyn elimination in the tumor.
From: An in situ hydrogel-mediated chemo-immunometabolic cancer therapy
a Frequency-dependent (strain = 0.1%, 37 °C) oscillatory shear rheology. b Stress ramp rheology of two hydrogel formulations. c Yield stress values from stress ramp measurements (n = 3). d Steady shear rheology of 10% and 20% hydrogels. e Step-shear measurements of 10% and 20% hydrogels over two cycles with alternating high shear (100 s−1) and low shear (0.05 s−1) rates. f Images of 20% hydrogel injection through an 18-gauge needle before injection (left), during injection (middle) and after injection (right) (the hydrogel was mixed with a blue food dye for easier visualization). g Degradation kinetics of 10% and 20% hydrogels in 4T1 tumor-bearing mice. h KYNase release from 10% and 20% hydrogels in 4T1 tumor-bearing mice over time. i Levels of Trp, Kyn, and anthranilic acid in the tumors from 4T1 tumor-bearing mice treated with 10% and 20% hydrogels loaded with KYNase. Metabolite concentrations below the detection limit were assigned to 0. In g–i, n = 4 biologically independent samples for the hydrogel groups, and n = 3 for PBS group. Throughout, data are presented as mean ± s.d., and statistical significance was determined by two-tailed t-test with Welch’s correction (c, h), or one-way ANOVA with Turkey’s post hoc test (i, day 1 to day 10) and two-tailed t-test with Welch’s correction (i, day 15). *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001, n.s., not significant. Source data and exact P values are provided as a Source Data file.
