Abstract
Cytokine storm and ROS overproduction in the lung always lead to acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in a very short time. Effectively controlling cytokine storm release syndrome (CRS) and scavenging ROS are key to the prevention and treatment of ALI/ARDS. In this work, the naringin nanoparticles (Nar-NPs) were prepared by the emulsification and evaporation method; then, the mesenchymal stem cell membranes (CMs) were extracted and coated onto the surface of the Nar-NPs through the hand extrusion method to obtain the biomimetic CM@Nar-NPs. In vitro, the CM@Nar-NPs showed good dispersity, excellent biocompatibility, and biosafety. At the cellular level, the CM@Nar-NPs had excellent abilities to target inflamed macrophages and the capacity to scavenge ROS. In vivo imaging demonstrated that the CM@Nar-NPs could target and accumulate in the inflammatory lungs. In an ALI mouse model, intratracheal (i.t.) instillation of the CM@Nar-NPs significantly decreased the ROS level, inhibited the proinflammatory cytokines, and remarkably promoted the survival rate. Additionally, the CM@Nar-NPs increased the expression of M2 marker (CD206), and decreased the expression of M1 marker (F4/80) in septic mice, suggesting that the Nar-modulated macrophages polarized towards the M2 subtype. Collectively, this work proves that a mesenchymal stem cell membrane-based biomimetic nanoparticle delivery system could efficiently target lung inflammation via i.t. administration; the released payload inhibited the production of inflammatory cytokines and ROS, and the Nar-modulated macrophages polarized towards the M2 phenotype which might contribute to their anti-inflammation effects. This nano-system provides an excellent pneumonia-treated platform with satisfactory biosafety and has great potential to effectively deliver herbal medicine.