Visualization of the Ferroptosis in Atherosclerotic Plaques with Nanoprobe Engineered by Macrophage Cell Membranes

Atherosclerosis (AS) is the root cause of cardiovascular diseases. Ferroptosis is characterized by highly iron-dependent lipid peroxidation and has been reported to play an important role in the pathogenesis of AS. Visualization of the ferroptosis process in atherosclerotic plaques is of great importance for diagnosing and treating AS. In this work, the rationally designed fluorescent probe FAS1 exhibited excellent advantages including large Stokes shift, sensitivity to environmental viscosity, good photostability, and improved water solubility. It also could co-locate with commercial lipid droplets (LDs) probes (BODIPY 493/503) well in RAW264.7 cells treated by the ferroptosis inducer. After self-assembly into nanoparticles and then encapsulation with macrophage membranes, the engineered FAS1@MM NPs could successfully target the atherosclerotic plaques in Western diet-induced apolipoprotein E knockout (ApoE–/–) mice and reveal the association of ferroptosis with AS through fluorescence imaging in vivo. This study may provide additional insights into the roles of ferroptosis in the diagnosis and treatment of AS.