Evaluation of Artemisia annua-Scutellaria baicalensis Herb Pair Carbon Dots Interfering NLRP3 Inflammatory Pathway For Effective Against H1N1 Viral Pneumonia in Mice Model

Purpose: Influenza is an acute respiratory infectious disease with high transmissibility and significant pandemic potential worldwide. In recent years, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)-based carbon dots (CDs) have emerged as promising therapeutic agents owing to their favorable biosafety profile and potent anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties. The present study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effects of TCM-derived CDs on influenza A virus (IAV)-induced pneumonia, and elucidate their underlying molecular mechanisms of action. Mouse Model and Methods: A murine model of IAV-induced pneumonia was established via intranasal instillation and subsequently treated with CDs co-derived from Artemisia annua and Scutellaria baicalensis (QH-CDs). Results: The results demonstrated that, compared to the observations in the model group, treatment with QH-CDs significantly alleviated the pathological damages to lung tissue, reduced the lung index, and promoted body weight recovery. QH-CDs treatment reduced the expression of key inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6) in lung tissue by over 60% compared to the model group (p < 0.0001). In addition, QH-CDs reduce lung viral titers by more than 70%, indicating that they have combined antiviral and anti-inflammatory effects. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that treatment with QH-CDs reversed the alterations in the expression patterns of several genes associated with immunity and inflammation. The differentially expressed genes were predominantly involved in immune regulation, cytokine activity, and inflammatory signaling pathways. The results of Quantitative Real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) show that the mRNA expression levels of NLRP3, Caspase-1, and IL-1β all significantly decreased. Protein expression analyses by Western blotting further confirmed the critical role of the NLRP3 inflammasome signaling pathway in mediating the therapeutic effects of QH-CDs. Conclusion: QH-CDs therapeutic effects may be closely related to the regulation of immune responses, inhibition of inflammatory responses, and modulation of the NLRP3 signaling pathway. This study provides novel insights into the therapeutic application of TCM-derived nanomaterials for the treatment of viral pneumonia.