Polymeric nanoparticle-based activatable near-infrared nanosensor for protease determination in vivo.

We report here a new protease activatable strategy based on a polymer nanoparticle platform. This nanosensor delivers chemically labeled matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-activatable fluorogenic peptides to the specific MMPs of interest in vivo. Intravenous administration of the nanosensor in an MMP-positive SCC-7 xenograft tumor and a colon cancer mouse model verified the enzyme specificity of the nanosensor in vivo. The design platform of the nanosensor is flexible and can be fine-tuned for a wide array of applications such as the detection of biomarkers, early diagnosis of disease, and monitoring therapeutic efficacy.