Pathogen infections impose severe challenges in clinical
practice,
especially for patients infected with antibiotic-resistant microbes.
The thioredoxin (Trx) system in Gram-positive bacteria serves as an
ideal antimicrobial target for novel medicine design due to the structural
differences from corresponding system in mammals. However, a backup
thiol-dependent antioxidant glutathione (GSH) system limits the effectiveness
of drugs in many Gram-negative bacteria. Herein, we synthesize a thiol-targeting
nanoinhibitor based on an enzyme-responsive covalent organic framework
(COF) coloaded with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and ebselen (EBS)
(Ag-TA-CON@EBS@PEG) to exert synergistic antibacterial effects. Since
azoreductase can dissociate the enzyme-responsive COF, we adopt this
strategy to achieve the accurate release of EBS and Ag+ at infection sites. Our research identifies that the functionalized
nanoinhibitor shows excellent bactericidal performance for Gram-positive
and Gram-negative bacteria in vitro and exhibits
low toxicity to normal cells. Besides, the nanoinhibitor presents
favorable biocompatibility, anti-inflammatory property, and effective
wound healing ability in mice. This paper provides a promising clinical
strategy for synergistic antibacterial therapy and enhanced wound
healing properties via an optimized combination of
the targeted nanomedicines with an intelligent drug conveying platform.