Carvacrol combined with NIR light-responsive nano-drug delivery system with specific anti-bacteria,anti-inflammation,and immunomodulation for periodontitis

Bacterial infection,biofilm formation,immune dysfunction are common triggers and aggravators in periodontitis,which render periodontal restoration challenging.Thus,a strategy with antibacterial,anti-inflammatory,immunoregulatory capacities has great promise in the clinical practice of periodontitis.Herein,carvacrol(CA)-based near-infrared(NIR)lightresponsive nano-drug delivery system is developed for the first time.The system consists of upconversion nanoparticles(UCNPs,which upconvert 808 nm NIR to blue light),mesoporous silica(mSiO_(2),the carrier channel),hydrophobic CA(blue light response properties).Under the irradiation of 808 nm NIR,owing to the synergy of CA and upconverted blue light,the UCNPs@mSiO_(2)-CA(UCMCs)exhibit the properties of specific anti-bacteria(including anaerobic bacteria),anti-inflammation,and immunomodulation.Notably,high-throughput sequencing results exhibit that many classic inflammatory immune-related signaling pathways,including the MAPK signaling pathway,tumor necrosis factor(TNF)signaling pathway,IL-17 signaling pathway,are enriched to remodel the immune microenvironment.Additionally,UCMCs with NIR irradiation accelerate periodontal restoration and serve as promising non-invasive management of periodontitis.Altogether,this study verifies the feasibility of herbal monomer combined with light-responsive in situ nano-drug delivery system and provides a more effective and reliable strategy for various potential applications of deep tissue diseases.