Porous Se@SiO₂ nanospheres treated paraquat-induced acute lung injury by resisting oxidative stress

Acute paraquat (PQ) poisoning is one of the most common forms of pesticide poisoning. Oxidative stress and inflammation are thought to be important mechanisms in PQ-induced acute lung injury (ALI). Selenium (Se) can scavenge intracellular free radicals directly or indirectly. In this study, we investigated whether porous Se@SiO₂ nanospheres could alleviate oxidative stress and inflammation in PQ-induced ALI. Male Sprague Dawley rats and RLE-6TN cells were used in this study. Rats were categorized into 3 groups: control (n=6), PQ (n=18), and PQ + Se@SiO₂ (n=18). The PQ and PQ + Se@SiO₂ groups were randomly and evenly divided into 3 sub-groups according to different time points (24, 48 and 72 h) after PQ treatment. Porous Se@SiO₂ nanospheres 1 mg/kg (in the PQ + Se@SiO₂ group) were administered via intraperitoneal injection every 24 h. Expression levels of reduced glutathione, malondialdehyde, superoxide dismutase, reactive oxygen species (ROS), nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), phosphorylated NF-κB (p-NF-κB), tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1β were detected, and a histological analysis of rat lung tissues was performed. The results showed that the levels of ROS, malondialdehyde, NF-κB, p-NF-κB, tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1β were markedly increased after PQ treatment. Glutathione and superoxide dismutase levels were reduced. However, treatment with porous Se@SiO₂ nanospheres markedly alleviated PQ-induced oxidative stress and inflammation. Additionally, the results from histological examinations and wet-to-dry weight ratios of rat lung tissues showed that lung damage was reduced after porous Se@SiO₂ nanosphere treatment. These data indicate that porous Se@SiO₂ nanospheres may reduce NF-κB, p-NF-κB and inflammatory cytokine levels by inhibiting ROS in PQ-induced ALI. This study demonstrates that porous Se@SiO₂ nanospheres may be a therapeutic method for use in the future for PQ poisoning.