Blue Light-Mediated Nitric Oxide-Releasing Formulation for the Multimodal Treatment of Acne Vulgaris

The topical treatment of acne vulgaris by a single therapeutic is difficult given the multifaceted causes of the disease. Treatment with photo-responsive nitric oxide (NO) donors and light represents an attractive alternative to conventional therapeutics due to the potential for multimodal therapeutic action against downstream acne processes. Herein, a topical hyaluronic acid (HA) formulation was developed to facilitate localized NO delivery from mesoporous silica nanoparticle (MSN) NO donors upon blue light exposure, while simultaneously providing anti-inflammatory activity. The NO release was tunable (0.09-0.51 µmol NO mg^-1) depending on wavelength, with shorter wavelengths and greater irradiances providing more efficient photolytic liberation. Antibacterial activity and cytocompatibility were directly modulated by photolytic NO release and payload, where NO was determined to be the primary antibacterial agent and large, initial NO bursts led to preservation of cell viability. Incorporation of the MSN-based NO donors into an HA formulation afforded additional metabolic and immunomodulatory behavior in vitro, demonstrating potential to decrease sebum production and inflammation in acne vulgaris. Blue light-mediated NO release from the HA formulation presents a multifunctional therapeutic platform that addresses key contributing downstream factors of acne.