Multifunctional pathology-mapping theranostic nanoplatforms for US/MR imaging and ultrasound therapy of atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerotic thrombosis is the leading cause of most life-threatening cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), particularly as a result of rupture or erosion of vulnerable plaques. Rupture or erosion-prone plaques are quite different in cellular composition and immunopathology, requiring different treatment strategies. The current imaging technology cannot distinguish the types of vulnerable plaques, and thus empirical treatment is still applied to all without a tailored and precise treatment. Herein, we propose a novel strategy called "Multifunctional Pathology-mapping Theranostic Nanoplatform (MPmTN)" for the tailored treatment of plaques based on the pathological classification. MPmTNs are made up of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs), containing contrast imaging materials Fe