Modified montmorillonite armed probiotics with enhanced on-site mucus-depleted intestinal colonization and H₂S...

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are often associated with dysregulated gut microbiota and excessive inflammatory microenvironment. Probiotic therapy combined with inflammation management is a promising approach to alleviate IBD, but the efficacy is hindered by the inferior colonization of probiotics in mucus-depleted inflammatory bowel segments. Here, we present modified montmorillonite armed probiotic Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (MMT-Fe@EcN) with enhanced intestinal colonization and hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) scavenging for synergistic alleviation of IBD. The montmorillonite layer that can protect EcN against environmental assaults in oral delivery and improve on-site colonization of EcN in the mucus-depleted intestinal segment due to its strong adhesive capability and electronegativity, with a 22.6-fold increase in colonization efficiency compared to EcN. Meanwhile, MMT-Fe@EcN can manage inflammation by scavenging H₂S, which allows for enhancing probiotic viability and colonization for restoring the gut microbiota. As a result, MMT-Fe@EcN exhibits extraordinary therapeutic effects in the dextran sulfate sodium-induced mouse colitis models, including alleviating intestinal inflammation and restoring disrupted intestinal barrier function, and gut microbiota. These findings provide a promising strategy for clinical IBD treatment and potentially other mucus-depletion-related diseases.