Multifunctional Prussian blue nanozymes alleviate atherosclerosis through inhibiting the inflammation feedback loop

Atherosclerosis (AS) is a lipid-driven chronic inflammatory disease characterized by the presence of numerous proinflammatory cytokines, massive reactive oxygen species (ROS) and excess lipids, which together result in an overall inflammatory positive feedback loop in the plaque focus. Due to its excellent enzyme-like activity in ROS scavenging and inflammation inhibition, as well as its photothermal effects in the lipid efflux ability of foam cells, Prussian blue (PB) has greater potential in preventing inflammatory factor loops for enhanced treatment of AS than traditional nanozymes. In this study, the multifunctional nanozyme BSA@PB/Cur was synthesized by self-assembly of bovine serum albumin (BSA) with PB and further encapsulation of the anti-inflammatory drug curcumin (Cur). The in vitro results showed that BSA@PB/Cur could effectively scavenge ROS and inhibit the expression of the inflammatory cytokines TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta as well as enhance the expression of ABCA1 and ABCG1 in foam cells, promote cholesterol efflux and inhibit foam cell formation. The in vivo experimental results demonstrated that BSA@PB/Cur could target plaque locations, significantly efflux the lipid content, and decrease the matrix metalloproteinase expression. This research provides a potential strategy for alleviating the persistent inflammatory feedback loop within the plaque microenvironment for AS treatment.