There is a distinct need for an alternative to broad spectrum immunosuppressants for the treatment of autoimmune disorders. Antioxidants represent one possible alternative; however, naturally occurring antioxidants have proven unsuccessful in treating these diseases. This work reports a new potential treatment for T Cell-mediated autoimmune diseases using incredibly potent antioxidant carbon nanomaterials that scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS) with much greater efficacy than endogenous antioxidants. Additionally, these carbon nanomaterials show affinity exclusively towards T Cells, demonstrating that they are not broad spectrum immunosuppressants and making them ideal vectors for targeted therapy. This work reports that the nontoxic PEGylated hydrophilic carbon clusters (PEG-HCCs) and PEGylated graphene quantum dots (PEG-GQDs) quench superoxide and hydroxyl radicals and are preferentially internalized by T Cells over other immune cells. This selectivity allows inhibition of T Cell activation and proliferation in vitro and in vivo without suppressing the rest of the immune system. This work also presents the promising in vivo effectiveness of PEG-HCCs to treat rat models of multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. In addition to those studies, this presentation will also cover the antioxidant mechanism of these nanomaterials as well as the future plans in treating other ROS-related disorders.

Antioxidant carbon nanomaterials for treating autoimmune disorders

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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