In Situ Piezoelectric-Catalytic Anti-Inflammation Promotes the Rehabilitation of Acute Spinal Cord Injury in Synergy

Abstract

Relieving inflammation via scavenging toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) during the acute phase of spinal cord injury (SCI) proves to be an effective strategy to mitigate secondary spinal cord injury and improve recovery of motor function. However, commonly used corticosteroid anti-inflammatory drugs show adverse side effects which may induce increased risk of wound infection. Fortunately, hydrogen (H₂), featuring selective antioxidant performance, easy penetrability, and excellent biosafety, is being extensively investigated as a potential anti-inflammatory therapeutic gas for the treatment of SCI. In this work, by a facile in situ growth approach of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) on the piezoelectric BaTiO₃, a particulate nanocomposite with Schottky heterojunction (Au@BT) is synthesized, which can generate H₂ continuously by catalyzing H⁺ reduction through piezoelectric catalysis. Further, theoretical calculations are employed to reveal the piezoelectric catalytic mechanism of Au@BT. Transcriptomics analysis and nontargeted large-scale metabolomic analysis reveal the deeper mechanism of the neuroprotective effect of H₂ therapy. The as-prepared Au@BT nanoparticle is first explored as a flexible hydrogen gas generator for efficient SCI therapy. This study highlights a promising prospect of nanocatalytic medicine for disease treatments by catalyzing H₂ generation; thus, offering a significant alternative to conventional approaches against refractory spinal cord injury.

Keywords: H2 therapy; anti‐inflammation; piezoelectric nanomedicine; spinal cord injury.