Nano-Micro Letters ›› 2024, Vol. 16 ›› Issue (1): 120-. doi: 10.1007/s40820-024-01322-7

• ARTICLE • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Dual-Atom Nanozyme Eye Drops Attenuate Inflammation and Break the Vicious Cycle in Dry Eye Disease

Dandan Chu1, Mengyang Zhao1(), Shisong Rong2(), Wonho Jhe3, Xiaolu Cai4, Yi Xiao3, Wei Zhang1, Xingchen Geng1, Zhanrong Li1(), Xingcai Zhang3(), Jingguo Li1()   

  1. 1 Henan Eye Hospital, Henan Provincial People’s Hospital, People’s Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450003, People’s Republic of China
    2 Department of Ophthalmology, Mass Eye and Ear, Mass General Brigham, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
    3 School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA
    4 College of Chemistry, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, People’s Republic of China
  • Received:2023-08-26 Accepted:2023-12-16 Online:2024-01-01 Published:2024-02-19
  • Contact: Mengyang Zhao, Shisong Rong, Zhanrong Li, Xingcai Zhang, Jingguo Li

Abstract:

Dry eye disease (DED) is a major ocular pathology worldwide, causing serious ocular discomfort and even visual impairment. The incidence of DED is gradually increasing with the high-frequency use of electronic products. Although inflammation is core cause of the DED vicious cycle, reactive oxygen species (ROS) play a pivotal role in the vicious cycle by regulating inflammation from upstream. Therefore, current therapies merely targeting inflammation show the failure of DED treatment. Here, a novel dual-atom nanozymes (DAN)-based eye drops are developed. The antioxidative DAN is successfully prepared by embedding Fe and Mn bimetallic single-atoms in N-doped carbon material and modifying it with a hydrophilic polymer. The in vitro and in vivo results demonstrate the DAN is endowed with superior biological activity in scavenging excessive ROS, inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation, decreasing proinflammatory cytokines expression, and suppressing cell apoptosis. Consequently, the DAN effectively alleviate ocular inflammation, promote corneal epithelial repair, recover goblet cell density and tear secretion, thus breaking the DED vicious cycle. Our findings open an avenue to make the DAN as an intervention form to DED and ROS-mediated inflammatory diseases.

Key words: Dry eye disease, DAN, Dual-atom nanozyme, Vicious cycle, NLRP3 inflammasome, Nanomedicine