Ultra-high antioxidant, anti-apoptosis and pro-angiogenesis effect of Mo2C nanosheets for treatment of diabetic wounds

Diabetic wounds are prevalent complications of diabetes and are difficult to heal because of the complicated pathophysiology. Considering the multifactorial pathogenesis and clinical needs, the combined multifunctional therapy represents the efficient solution for diabetic wound healing, and the key is to find suitable agents possessing multiple responses.Here, we present a two-dimensional (2D) ultrathin molybdenum carbide (Mo2C) MXene nanosheets (NSs) to accelerate diabetic wound healing by exerting antioxidant, anti-inflammation, anti-apoptosis and pro-angiogenesis functions. The Mo2C NSs are characterized by mixed Mo valence, Mo vacancy and abundant unpaired electrons, and abundant surface groups. The unique structures make Mo2C NSs can scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS) through electron transfer, H atom transfer and enzyme-like catalysis, thus exhibit broad-spectrum and high-efficiency antioxidant capacity, and catalyze oxygen production. The therapeutic efficacy of biologically safe Mo2C NSs modified with tannic acid in diabetic wounds has been systematically investigated in cellular and animal models. They can remarkably promote diabetic wound healing by reducing oxidative stress, activating macrophages to polarize toward M2 phenotype, suppressing the inflammatory response, inhibiting apoptosis and accelerating epidermal formation and collagen deposition. This study will facilitate the exploration of multifunctional materials and treatment strategies for diabetic wound healing and ROS/inflammation related multifactorial diseases.