Antiviral and Anti‐Inflammatory Treatment with Multifunctional Alveolar Macrophage‐Like Nanoparticles in a Surrogate Mouse Model of COVID‐19

• DOI: 10.1002/advs.202003556
• Publication Date: 2021-05-12T09:51:40Z
• Authors: Bin Li; Wei Wang; Weifeng Song; Zheng Zhao; Qingqin Tan; Zhaoyan Zhao; Lantian Tang; Tianchuan Zhu; Jialing Yin; Jun Bai; Xin Dong; Siyi Tan; Qunying Hu; Ben Zhong Tang; Xi Huang
• Keywords: Proinflammatory cytokine; Coronavirus; Alveolar macrophage; Photothermal effect

Abstract The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) is continually worsening. Clinical treatment for COVID‐19 remains primarily supportive with no specific medicines or regimens. Here, the development multifunctional alveolar macrophage (AM)‐like nanoparticles (NPs) photothermal inactivation capability reported. NPs, made by wrapping polymeric cores AM membranes, display same surface receptors as AMs, including receptor and multiple cytokine receptors. By acting decoys, NPs block from host cell entry absorb various proinflammatory cytokines, thus achieving combined antiviral anti‐inflammatory treatment. To enhance efficiency, an efficient material based on aggregation‐induced emission luminogens doped into virus disruption under near‐infrared (NIR) irradiation. In a surrogate mouse model caused murine coronavirus, AM‐like NIR irradiation decreases burden levels, reduces lung damage inflammation, confers significant survival advantage to infected mice. Crucially, this therapeutic strategy may be clinically applied at early stage through atomization inhalation followed respiratory tract, alleviating infection progression reducing transmission risk.