Codelivery of Gaseous Signaling Molecules for Biomedical Applications

Abstract

Gaseous signaling molecules (GSMs) including nitric oxide (NO), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) have presented excellent therapeutic efficacy such as anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-cancer effects and multiple biomedical applications in recent years. As the three most vital signaling molecules in human physiology, these three GSMs show so intertwined and orchestrated interactions that the synergy of multiple gases may demonstrate a more complex therapeutic potential than single gas delivery. Consequently, researchers have been devoted to developing codelivery systems of GSMs by synthesizing a single molecule as a dual donor to maximize the gaseous therapeutic efficacy. In this minireview, we summarize the recent developments of molecules or materials enabling codelivery of GSMs for biomedical applications. It appears that compared with the abundant cases of codelivery of NO and H₂S, research on codelivery of CO and the other two GSMs separately remains to be explored.

Keywords: biomedical applications; carbon monoxide; codelivery; hydrogen sulfide; nitric oxide.