Advanced applications of cerium oxide based nanozymes in cancer

Abstract

Cerium oxide nanozymes have emerged as a new type of bio-antioxidants in recent years. CeO₂ nanozymes possess enzyme mimetic activities with outstanding free radical scavenging activity, facile synthesis conditions, and excellent biocompatibility. Based on these extraordinary properties, use of CeO₂ nanozymes has been demonstrated to be a highly versatile therapeutic method for many diseases, such as for inflammation, rheumatoid arthritis, hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury and Alzheimer's disease. In addition to that, CeO₂ nanozymes have been widely used in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Many examples can be found in the literature, such as magnetic resonance detection, tumour marker detection, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, photodynamic therapy (PDT), and photothermal therapy (PTT). This review systematically summarises the latest applications of CeO₂-based nanozymes in cancer research and treatment. We believe that this paper will help develop value-added CeO₂ nanozymes, offering great potential in the biotechnology industry and with great significance for the diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of malignancies.