Targeting Microglia for Therapy of Parkinson’s Disease by Using Biomimetic Ultrasmall Nanoparticles

Microglia as an important type of innate immune cell in the brain have been considered as an effective therapeutic target for the treatment of central nervous degenerative diseases. Herein, we report cell membrane coated novel biomimetic Cu2–xSe-PVP-Qe nanoparticles (denoted as CSPQ@CM nanoparticles, where PVP is poly(vinylpyrrolidone), Qe is quercetin, and CM is the cell membrane of neuron cells) for effectively targeting and modulating microglia to treat Parkinson’s disease (PD). The CSPQ nanoparticles exhibit multienzyme activities and could effectively scavenge the reactive oxygen species and promote the polarization of microglia into the anti-inflammatory M2-like phenotype to relieve neuroinflammation. We reveal that biomimetic CSPQ@CM nanoparticles targeted microglia through the specific interactions between the membrane surface vascular cells adhering to molecule-1 and α4β1 integrin expressed by microglia. They could significantly improve the symptoms of PD mice to result in an excellent therapeutic efficacy, as evidenced by the recovery of their dopamine level in cerebrospinal fluid, tyrosine hydroxylase, and ionized calcium binding adapter protein 1 to normal levels. Our work demonstrates the great potential of these robust biomimetic nanoparticles in the targeted treatment of PD and other central nervous degenerative diseases.