Macrophage Vesicles‐Loaded NIR‐II AIEgens for Precise In Situ Fluorescence Imaging of Atherosclerosis
Precise diagnosis of atherosclerosis (AS) is a crucial strategy for reducing acute cardiovascular events. Herein, a macrophage membrane (MM)-camouflaged biomimetic vesicle loaded with near-infrared-II (NIR-II) aggregation-induced emission luminogens (AIEgens) (P4TT@MM) is proposed to achieve localized in vivo imaging of atherosclerosis. The AIEgens characteristics of P4TT@MM effectively compensate for the fluorescence intensity decrease caused by the intramolecular torsional charge transfer (TICT) effect, even in foam cell-rich lesions. Benefiting from the biomimetic camouflage of MM and its strong affinity for atherosclerotic plaques, P4TT@MM enables precise targeting of lesion sites, successfully achieving high-contrast imaging of atherosclerotic plaques in the carotid arteries and aortas of the AS mice model. Compared with free P4TT, the NIR-II fluorescence intensity of P4TT@MM is increased by 140% in carotid arteries and 152% in aortas, respectively. Moreover, the P4TT@MM demonstrates robust biocompatibility combined with significant clinical translation potential. This study may present a promising tool for the clinical diagnosis of AS.
Authors
- Zhijin Fan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0018-4949)
- Laiping Fang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-5827-9327)
- Delong Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8913-3886)
- Judun Zheng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5016-700X)
- Yuhui Liao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4702-9516)
- Caifa You (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7040-6960)
- Qin Zeng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6246-6098)
- Xu Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1583-3916)
- Junhui Zhao
- Xipeng Li
- Hua Ma
- Hongju Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7310-9072)
- Shuo Sang
- Yunxia Wu
- Zhiheng Luo
- Dong Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0760-8165)
Institutions
- Jinan University (CN)
- Shenzhen University (CN)
- Kunming Medical University (CN)
- First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (CN)
- Ningxia Medical University (CN)
- Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital (CN)
- Southern Medical University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Small Methods
- Published
- 2025-06-02
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/smtd.202500486
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Nanoplatforms for cancer theranostics
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.67
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- China Postdoctoral Science Foundation
- Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province
- National Key Research and Development Program of China
- Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation of Guangdong Province