A terminator-inspired liquid metal stent for treating atherosclerotic vascular stenosis with precise vascular matching and magnetothermally regulated active degradation.

Atherosclerosis represents the primary pathological basis of cardiovascular diseases. Vascular stent implantation as a key intervention for treating atherosclerosis, currently faces challenges such as the lack of personalized customization, difficulty in precisely matching diseased vessels, and prolonged risks of thrombosis and restenosis. Inspired by the shape-shifting liquid-metal robot T-1000 from the film Terminator, this research pioneers the use of liquid metal (LM) in vascular interventional therapy. LM was cast into a mold, then drilled and ground to the Hep/PLL/PDA/LM stent. Its heparin coating confers effective anti-thrombogenic activity and mitigates restenosis. More importantly, after the process of vascular remodeling, the stent can be degraded non-invasively through the application of an alternating magnetic field. Furthermore, the stent material exhibits notable antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The findings above suggest that the magnetothermal characteristics of LM make it possible to precisely match diseased vessels and achieve controllably degradable vascular interventional therapy. This capability can fundamentally address the safety risks associated with the prolonged presence of traditional vascular stents, potentially eliminating the necessity for follow-up surgical interventions.