“Bioactive” Therapeutic Contact Lens Triggered by Biomimetic Chiral Helical Nanoarchitectonics for Rapid Corneal Repair

Consistent corneal epithelial injury would cause chronic inflammation, neovascularization, and even corneal scarring, resulting in vision loss. Rapid repair is crucial for treatment, within which the use of therapeutic contact lenses presents great promise. A great challenge is how to achieve rapid repair of severely deficient corneal epithelium and regulation of the oxidative stress environment simultaneously. Herein, a "bioactive" therapeutic contact lens, mimicking the layered helical structure of the native cornea, is designed based on the assembly of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) inside poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) with CeO_x formed on the CNCs' surface (CeO_x/CNC@CNC-PHEMA). The obtained CeO_x/CNC@CNC-PHEMA hydrogel possesses a chiral helical structure that regulates the microenvironment, and the nanoscaled CeO_x on the CNCs' surface (CeO_x/CNC) acts as a reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenger and triggers a "bioactive" therapeutic contact lens for rapid corneal repair. This hydrogel meets the conditions of a therapeutic contact lens, including high degree of transparency, excellent mechanical properties, great ROS-scavenging efficacy, and a significant enhancement of biocompatibility. Importantly, the adhesion and proliferation of human corneal epithelial cells on the CeO_x/CNC@CNC-PHEMA hydrogels are successful. An in vitro corneal oxidative damage model and in vivo animal model of corneal injury experiments were conducted, and results revealed that the hydrogel realized rapid corneal epithelial cells migration with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antineovascular effects, achieving modulation of the ocular surface microenvironment, evidencing a "bioactive" property of the hydrogel as a therapeutic contact lens. This biotopological hydrogel with a biomimetic corneal architecture has provided a rational strategy for rapid corneal repair.