Hydrogen sulfide as a therapeutic agent for diabetic wounds: effects on inflammation and fibroblast pyroptosis

作者：Fusheng Zhao, Yuanyuan Li, Qunying Hu, Jiali Xu, Na Zhang, Yanmu Chen, Xinyue Jiang, Chunfu Gu, Kexin Zhang, Geng Wu · 发表于：Frontiers in Immunology · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.3389/fimmu.2025.1558443 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Sulfur Compounds in Biology、Wound Healing and Treatments、Hydrogen's biological and therapeutic effects

Introduction Chronic nonhealing wounds are one of the most serious complications of diabetes mellitus (DM), with limited treatment options. Hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) plays a protective role against multiple inflammatory diseases. This study aimed to explore the effects of H 2 S on diabetic skin wound healing and its underlying mechanisms. Methods A streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat model was established, and the rats were randomly divided into control, DM, and DM + NaHS (a donor of H 2 S) groups. Full-thickness wounds were made on the dorsal skin of the rats. H 2 S levels and H 2 S-synthesizing enzyme expression were evaluated in the wound tissue. Wound healing, histological changes, inflammasome activation, fibroblast pyroptosis, and phosphorylation of signaling components of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway were assessed. Results The results showed that NaHS administration effectively restored H 2 S levels and promoted skin wound healing, as evidenced by the amelioration of histological changes and increased collagen deposition in diabetic rats. Meanwhile, NaHS treatment inhibited macrophage M1 polarization and decreased the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in diabetic wound tissues, notably, suppressing NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome activation and fibroblast pyroptosis. In addition, NaHS treatment was able to inhibit the activation...