Fig. 11

Schematic illustration of the mechanism for eradication CSCs by near-infrared photoactive carbon nanohorn (CNH) complexes; (A) In the absence of stimuli, transient receptor potential vanilloid family type 2 (TRPV2) channels are maintained in the off-state to maintain intracellular Ca²⁺ homoeostasis. PKCα is inactivated because of low concentrations of cytosolic Ca²⁺. β-catenin that is stabilized and accumulated in the cytosol translocates into the nucleus and activates its target genes, leading to cancer proliferation. B In the presence of stimuli, antibody-guided CNH targets TRPV2 receptors and activates TPRV2 channels through the heat generated from laser radiation. Ca²⁺ influx via TRPV2 channels increases PKCα activity, leading to β-catenin phosphorylation. This phosphorylation promotes rapid degradation of cytosolic β-catenin by the proteasome. Thus, the expression levels of genes that are involved in cell survival and stemness are repressed, resulting in apoptosis and inhibition of cancer stemness. Abbreviation: a protein kinase that directly phosphorylates β-catenin in the presence of Ca²⁺ and promotes its degradation (PKCα), PEGylated CNH (PCNH).  Reproduced with permission from Ref. [233]