Black phosphorus in theragenerative medicine: a multi-organ perspective on disease modulation and tissue repair.

Abstract

Black phosphorus (BP) has attracted considerable attention as a biodegradable, stimuli-responsive 2D nanomaterial, emerging as a powerful theragenerative platform that integrates disease modulation with tissue regeneration. While earlier studies focused mainly on its anticancer properties, this review provides the first comprehensive analysis of BP as a theragenerative agent, unifying its disease-modulating capacity with its ability to stimulate tissue regeneration across multiple organs. BP exhibits several shared advantages: its degradation releases bioactive phosphate ions that support tissue repair; its highly reactive surface promotes cell interactions and enables efficient drug loading and delivery; its responsiveness to external stimuli, such as Near-infrared (NIR) light, ultrasound, and electrical signals, allows precise, on-demand therapeutic activation; and its ability to modulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and immune modulation helps balance inflammation and regeneration. These properties collectively enhance osteogenesis and implant integration in bone, accelerate wound healing in skin, promote neural repair and redox homeostasis, protect cardiac tissue, and support recovery in kidney and liver injuries. By highlighting these mechanisms, this review emphasizes BP's versatility as a multifunctional nanomaterial capable of addressing pathological conditions while simultaneously stimulating endogenous regenerative pathways, thereby laying the foundation for its translation into next-generation theragenerative platforms.