Mesoporous zinc-polyphenol nanozyme for attenuating renal ischemia–reperfusion injury

Aim: To target the reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and renal tubular epithelial cell (rTEC) death in renal ischemia–reperfusion injury (IRI), we constructed a nanoparticle that offers ROS scavenging and rTEC-death inhibition: mesoporous zinc–tannic acid nanozyme (ZnTA). Materials & methods: After successfully constructing ZnTA, we proceeded to examine its effect on ROS accumulation, cellular ferroptosis and apoptosis, as well as injury severity. Results: Malondialdehyde, Fe2+ amounts and 4-HNE staining demonstrated that ZnTA effectively attenuated rTEC ferroptosis. TUNEL staining confirmed that Zn2+ carried by ZnTA could effectively inhibit caspase 3 and caspase 9, mitigating apoptosis. Finally, it reduced renal IRI through the synergistic effect of ROS scavenging and cell-death inhibition. Conclusion: This study is expected to provide a paradigm for a combined therapeutic strategy for renal IRI.