Tea Polyphenol-Derived Carbon Dots Alleviate Abdominal\nAortic Aneurysm Progression by Mitigating Oxidative Stress and Ferroptosis

Abdominal\naortic aneurysm (AAA) is a cardiovascular disease with\npotentially fatal consequences, yet effective therapies to prevent\nits progression remain unavailable. Oxidative stress is associated\nwith AAA development. Carbon dots have reactive oxygen species-scavenging\nactivity, while green tea extract exhibits robust antioxidant properties.\nHowever, the potential of green tea derived carbon dots in mitigating\nAAA progression has not been fully elucidated. In this study, tea\npolyphenol carbon dots (TP-CDs) were synthesized via hydrothermal\nmethods and characterized for their antioxidant properties. The antioxidant\neffects of TP-CDs were evaluated, and TP-CDs’ impact on phenotypic\ntransformation, oxidative stress, apoptosis and ferroptosis was investigated\ncomprehensively in an Ang II-induced AAA model, employing techniques\nsuch as Western blotting, flow cytometry, and immunohistochemistry.\nThe results revealed that TP-CDs effectively alleviated oxidative\nstress induced by Ang II stimulation, thereby inhibiting phenotypic\ntransformation, apoptosis, and ferroptosis <i>in vivo</i>. Furthermore, treatment with TP-CDs significantly attenuated AAA\nprogression in a mouse AAA model. Overall, these findings demonstrate\nthat TP-CDs reduced reactive oxygen species levels in the microenvironment\nand alleviated the progression of AAA, offering a promising therapeutic\nstrategy for this condition.