Reactive Oxygen Species‐Triggered Carbon Dots‐Based Biomimetic Nanotheranostic Agents for Atherosclerosis Management

Abstract

Atherosclerosis (AS) is a chronic inflammation vascular disease, with its ongoing progression can lead to the onset of cardiovascular diseases. Traditional drug therapy is limited by poor drug delivery, insufficient drug accumulation, and notable toxic side effects. In addition, the failure to receive an early AS diagnosis is primarily responsible for the delayed treatment, which subsequently contributes to the high frequency of life‐threatening cardiovascular events. In this work, a macrophage membranes (MM)‐camouflaged reactive oxygen species (ROS)‐sensitive nanotheranostic platform (LC‐MM) is constructed to improve AS target diagnosis and treatment efficacy. Thanks to the strong antioxidant properties of carbon dots (CDs), CDs as drug carriers for lovastatin aimed to synergistically treat AS by reducing ROS accumulation and suppressing inflammatory responses in vitro and in vivo are employed. The active functions of MM coupled with the ROS‐responsiveness of LC nanoplatform are expected to enhance the efficacy of nanotherapy, particularly to reduce lipid deposition, macrophage infiltration, necrotic core size, collagen content, pro‐inflammatory cytokines, and oxidative stress accumulation. Moreover, the near‐infrared emission properties inherited from CDs facilitated precise fluorescence (FL) imaging for AS plaques. Thus, the biomimetic nanotheranostic agent LC‐MM represented a powerful platform for safe and effective AS management.