Cuproptosis affects osteosarcoma locally, and the exploitation of cuproptosis-related biomaterials for osteosarcoma treatment is still in its infancy. We designed and synthesized a novel injectable gel of Cu ion–coordinated Tremella fuciformis polysaccharide (TFP–Cu) for antiosteosarcoma therapy. This material has antitumor effects, the ability to stimulate immunity and promote bone formation, and a controlled Cu 2+ release profile in smart response to tumor microenvironment stimulation. TFP–Cu can selectively inhibit the proliferation of K7M2 tumor cells by arresting the cell cycle and promoting cell apoptosis and cuproptosis. TFP–Cu also promoted the M1 polarization of RAW264.7 cells and regulated the immune microenvironment. These effects increased osteogenic gene and protein expression in MC3T3-E1 cells. TFP–Cu could significantly limit tumor growth in tumor-bearing mice by inducing tumor cell apoptosis and improving the activation of anti-CD8 T cell-mediated immune responses. Therefore, TFP–Cu could be a potential candidate for treating osteosarcoma and bioactive drug carrier for further cancer-related applications.
Wilson disease (WD) is caused by mutations of copper-transporting gene, ATP7B , leading to abnormal copper metabolism. A better characterization of WD is essential in understanding the effects of excess copper and how it disrupts immune regulation and hematopoietic development. Furthermore, exploration of the relationship between copper-mediated proliferation or cuproptosis and immune regulation is critical for developing new immune therapies. Therefore, we performed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) to develop an atlas of immune landscape. Cells were clustered into several immune subsets, and cuproptosis-associated genes were assessed. Differential expression analysis was performed to identify WD-specific signatures by comparing transcriptome profiles of patients with WD with HDs. Excess copper impaired immune homeostasis and hematopoietic development. Then, we developed a map of immune landscape of patients with WD. Excess copper is involved in the metabolic reprogramming of immune cells, such as glycosis in CD14 + monocytes. We found that antigen processing-related pathway dysregulates in immune cells of patients with WD. Our study revealed that abnormal copper concentration influences the expression of HLA-I and HLA-II molecules. It is noteworthy that a high concentration of intracellular copper differs significantly from high concentration of extracellular copper. We have also identified a gene set of neurologic abnormality, which were dysregulated in PBMCs of patients with WD. We also observed abnormal expression of cuproptosis-associated genes in proliferating or malignant cells, providing new insights into the application of cuproptosis in cancer treatment.