Topically applied fullerenols protect against radiation dermatitis by scavenging reactive oxygen species

• Published in: Discover nano Vol. 18; no. 1; p. 101
• Main Authors: Yin, Hanying, Gao, You, Chen, Weiguang, Tang, Chen, Zhu, Zihan, Li, Kun, Xia, Siyu, Han, Changshun, Ding, Xiaoyan, Ruan, Fengkai, Tian, Hanrui, Zhu, Changfeng, Xie, Suyuan, Zuo, Zhenghong, Liao, Lixin, He, Chengyong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 15.08.2023; Springer Nature B.V; Springer
• Subjects: Antioxidant; antioxidant activity; Apoptosis; Chemistry and Materials Science; collagen; cream; Dermatitis; DNA damage; drugs; Free radicals; Fullerenols; histology; Ionizing radiation; Irradiation; Materials Science; Molecular Medicine; Nanochemistry; Nanomedicine; Nanoscale Science and Technology; Nanotechnology; Nanotechnology and Microengineering; Oxygen; Radiation; Radiation damage; Radiation dermatitis; Radiation effects; Radiation protection; Radioprotection; Reactive oxygen species; Scavenging; Skin; topical application; X ray irradiation; X-radiation; Fullerenols; Radiation dermatitis; Antioxidant; Radioprotection; Nanomedicine
• ISSN: 2731-9229; 1931-7573; 2731-9229; 1556-276X
• DOI: 10.1186/s11671-023-03869-7

Adverse skin reactions caused by ionizing radiation are collectively called radiation dermatitis (RD), and the use of nanomedicine is an attractive approach to this condition. Therefore, we designed and large-scale synthesized fullerenols that showed free radical scavenging ability in vitro. Next, we pretreated X-ray-exposed cells with fullerenols. The results showed that pretreatment with fullerenols significantly scavenged intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced and enhanced the antioxidant capacity, protecting skin cells from X-ray-induced DNA damage and apoptosis. Moreover, we induced RD in mice by applying 30 Gy of X-ray irradiation, followed by treatment with fullerenols. We found that after treatment, the RD scores dropped, and the histological results systematically demonstrated that topically applied fullerenols could reduce radiation-induced skin epidermal thickening, collagen deposition and skin appendage damage and promote hair regeneration after 35 days. Compared with Trolamine cream, a typical RD drug, fullerenols showed superior radiation protection. Overall, the in vitro and in vivo experiments proved that fullerenols agents against RD.