Spatiotemporally Orchestrated H <sub>2</sub> S/NO‐Releasing Stent for Synergistic Vascular Healing
Abstract Cardiovascular stents persistently struggle to reconcile rapid endothelialization with long‐term prevention of thrombosis and restenosis. This study develops a spatiotemporally orchestrated dual‐gas‐releasing hydrogel coating that synchronizes H 2 S and NO delivery with the dynamic phases of vascular healing. The coating is fabricated by covalently grafting an alginate coating onto poly(L‐lactic acid) stents via a benzophenone‐mediated two‐step surface photopolymerization. A thiol‑activated H 2 S donor is anchored within the coating, while alginate‑chelated Cu 2 ⁺ catalyzes NO generation from endogenous S‑nitrosothiols. An early H 2 S burst synergizes with NO to suppress thromboinflammation and prime a regenerative niche, while sustained NO release maintains vascular homeostasis and directs long‐term remodeling. The coating reduces platelet adhesion by over 90%, virtually eliminates thrombosis in an arteriovenous shunt model, triples endothelial coverage, and suppresses smooth muscle cell proliferation by ≈73%. It also reprograms macrophage polarization, increasing the M2/M1 ratio tenfold, and reduces intracellular ROS levels by >90%. In a rabbit abdominal aorta model, the coating promotes flow‐aligned endothelialization, achieving CD31⁺/eNOS⁺ coverage comparable to native tissue within 3 months, while decreasing neointimal thickness by 66% versus controls. This spatiotemporally tailored gasotransmitter delivery resolves the healing dichotomy of stents, providing a clinically translatable platform for next‐generation vascular implants.
Authors
- Y X Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-4836-0503)
- Daihua Fu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2676-4397)
- Jiayi Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0678-7847)
- Xiang Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1003-9892)
- Yang Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3855-7720)
Institutions
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College (CN)
- Sichuan University (CN)
- West China Hospital of Sichuan University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Advanced Functional Materials
- Published
- 2025-12-02
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202522266
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Hydrogels: synthesis, properties, applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.59