Injectable bioresorbable conductive hydrogels for multimodal brain tumor electroimmunotherapy

Amit Singh Yadav, Umut Aydemir, Karin Hellman, Peter Ekström, Abdelrazek H. Mousa, Jiaxin Li, Muhammad Anwar Shameem, Cedric Dicko, Johan Bengzon, Fredrik Ek, Martin Hjort and Roger Olsson ()
Additional contact information
Amit Singh Yadav: Lund University
Umut Aydemir: Lund University
Karin Hellman: Lund University
Peter Ekström: Lund University
Abdelrazek H. Mousa: University of Gothenburg
Jiaxin Li: Lund University
Muhammad Anwar Shameem: University of Gothenburg
Cedric Dicko: Lund University
Johan Bengzon: Lund University
Fredrik Ek: Lund University
Martin Hjort: Lund University
Roger Olsson: Lund University

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Current electrode technologies are too rigid for safe and effective delivery of electrotherapy in the brain, and patients with glioblastoma continue to face a devastating prognosis, with median survival stalled at 15 months despite intensive treatment with surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. But these conventional approaches potentially compromise immune function, underscoring the urgent need for therapies that activate, rather than suppress, the immune system. Therefore, we introduce injectable conductive hydrogels engineered to match the softness of brain tissue while exhibiting electrical conductivities up to three orders of magnitude higher than any previously reported injectable hydrogels. They can be implanted through minimally invasive syringe capillaries as narrow as 30 µm—avoiding brain tissue damage—and via convection-enhanced delivery (CED) or endovascular catheters, the latter potentially eliminating the need for open brain surgery. Additionally, it can drape a resection cavity to eliminate residual tumor cells. In human glioblastoma tumors in the chicken chorioallantoic membrane model, implantation of the electrode using CED, followed by irreversible electroporation, obliterated tumors within three days. Other injection techniques impaired tumor growth, induced immunogenic cell death, and a robust infiltration of helper and cytotoxic T cells, alongside macrophages, highlighting the immune-activating and tumor-targeting capabilities.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-65785-x

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