Minimally Invasive Therapy: Hydrogen‐Powered Microswimmers for Precise and Active Hydrogen Therapy Towards Acute Ischemic Stroke

Biodegradable microswimmers offer great potential for minimally invasive

targeted therapy due to their tiny scale, multifunctionality, and versatility.

However, most of the reported systems focused on the proof-of-concept on

the in vitro level. Here, the successful fabrication of facile hydrogen-powered

microswimmers (HPMs) for precise and active therapy of acute ischemic stroke

is demonstrated. The hydrogen (H2) generated locally from the designed magnesium

(Mg) microswimmer functions not only as a propellant for motion, but

also as an active ingredient for reactive oxygen species (ROS) and inflammation

scavenging. Due to the continuous detachment of the produced H2, the motion

of the microswimmers results in active H2 delivery that allows for enhanced

extracellular and intracellular reducibility. With the help of a stereotaxic apparatus

device, HPMs were injected precisely into the lateral ventricle of middle

cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) rats. By scavenging ROS and inflammation

via active H2, MCAO rats exhibit significant decrease in infarct volume,

improved spatial learning and memory capability with minimal adverse effects,

demonstrating efficient efficacy on anti-ischemic stroke. The as-developed

HPMs with excellent biocompatibility and ROS scavenging capability holds

great promise for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke or other oxidative

stress induced diseases in clinic in the near future.

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