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Aesthetic Surgery Journal Sep 2023For decades, a wide variety of natural and synthetic materials have been used to augment human tissue to improve aesthetic outcomes. Dermal fillers are some of the most... (Review)
Review
For decades, a wide variety of natural and synthetic materials have been used to augment human tissue to improve aesthetic outcomes. Dermal fillers are some of the most widely used aesthetic treatments throughout the body. Initially, the primary function of dermal fillers was to restore depleted volume. As biomaterial research has advanced, however, a variety of biostimulatory fillers have become staples in aesthetic medicine. Such fillers often contain a carrying vehicle and a biostimulatory material that induces de novo synthesis of major structural components of the extracellular matrix. One such filler, Radiesse (Merz Aesthetics, Raleigh, NC), is composed of calcium hydroxylapatite microspheres suspended in a carboxymethylcellulose gel. In addition to immediate volumization, Radiesse treatment results in increases of collagen, elastin, vasculature, proteoglycans, and fibroblast populations via a cell-biomaterial-mediated interaction. When injected, Radiesse acts as a cell scaffold and clinically manifests as immediate restoration of depleted volume, improvements in skin quality and appearance, and regeneration of endogenous extracellular matrices. This narrative review contextualizes Radiesse as a regenerative aesthetic treatment, summarizes its unique use cases, reviews its rheological, material, and regenerative properties, and hypothesizes future combination treatments in the age of regenerative aesthetics.
Topics: Humans; Calcium; Durapatite; Dermal Fillers; Biocompatible Materials; Esthetics
PubMed: 37635437
DOI: 10.1093/asj/sjad173 -
Bioactive Materials Feb 2024Regulating macrophage activation precisely is crucial in treating chronic inflammation in osteoarthritis (OA). However, the stable pro-inflammatory state and deep...
Regulating macrophage activation precisely is crucial in treating chronic inflammation in osteoarthritis (OA). However, the stable pro-inflammatory state and deep distribution of macrophages in vivo pose a great challenge to treatment. In this study, inspired by the innate immune, immune cell mobilized hydrogel microspheres were constructed by microfluidic methods and load chemokines, macrophage antibodies and engineered cell membrane vesicles (sEVs) via covalent and non-covalent junctions. The immune cell mobilized hydrogel microspheres, based on a mixture of streptavidin grafted hyaluronic acid methacrylate (HAMA-SA) and Chondroitin sulfate methacrylate (ChSMA) microspheres (HCM), can recruit, capture and reprogram proinflammatory macrophages in the joint cavity to improve the joint inflammatory microenvironment. In vitro experiments demonstrated that immune cell mobilized hydrogel microspheres had excellent macrophage recruitment, capture, and reprogramming abilities. Pro-inflammatory macrophages can be transformed into anti-inflammatory macrophages with an efficiency of 88.5 %. Animal experiments also revealed significant reduction in synovial inflammation and cartilage matrix degradation of OA. Therefore, the immune cell mobilized hydrogel microspheres may be an effective treatment of OA inflammation for the future.
PubMed: 37869722
DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2023.09.010 -
Bioactive Materials Jul 2023As a new type of injectable biomaterials, functional microspheres have attracted increasing attention in tissue regeneration because they possess some advantageous... (Review)
Review
As a new type of injectable biomaterials, functional microspheres have attracted increasing attention in tissue regeneration because they possess some advantageous properties compared to other biomaterials, including hydrogels. A variety of bio-inspired microspheres with unique structures and properties have been developed as cellular carriers and drug delivery vehicles in recent years. In this review, we provide a comprehensive summary of the progress of functional and biodegradable microspheres that have been used for tissue regeneration over the last two decades. First, we briefly introduce the biomaterials and general methods for microsphere fabrication. Next, we focus on the newly developed technologies for preparing functional microspheres, including macroporous microspheres, nanofibrous microspheres, hollow microspheres, core-shell structured microspheres, and surface-modified functional microspheres. After that, we discuss the application of functional microspheres for tissue regeneration, specifically for bone, cartilage, dental, neural, cardiac, and skin tissue regeneration. Last, we present our perspectives and future directions of functional microspheres as injectable carriers for the future advancement of tissue regeneration.
PubMed: 37056261
DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2022.07.025 -
Nature Communications Jul 2023The response rate of pancreatic cancer to chemotherapy or immunotherapy pancreatic cancer is low. Although minimally invasive irreversible electroporation (IRE) ablation...
The response rate of pancreatic cancer to chemotherapy or immunotherapy pancreatic cancer is low. Although minimally invasive irreversible electroporation (IRE) ablation is a promising option for irresectable pancreatic cancers, the immunosuppressive tumour microenvironment that characterizes this tumour type enables tumour recurrence. Thus, strengthening endogenous adaptive antitumour immunity is critical for improving the outcome of ablation therapy and post-ablation immune therapy. Here we present a hydrogel microsphere vaccine that amplifies post-ablation anti-cancer immune response via releasing its cargo of FLT3L and CD40L at the relatively lower pH of the tumour bed. The vaccine facilitates migration of the tumour-resident type 1 conventional dendritic cells (cDC1) to the tumour-draining lymph nodes (TdLN), thus initiating the cDC1-mediated antigen cross-presentation cascade, resulting in enhanced endogenous CD8 T cell response. We show in an orthotopic pancreatic cancer model in male mice that the hydrogel microsphere vaccine transforms the immunologically cold tumour microenvironment into hot in a safe and efficient manner, thus significantly increasing survival and inhibiting the growth of distant metastases.
Topics: Hydrogels; Microspheres; Pancreatic Neoplasms; Male; Animals; Mice; Cell Line, Tumor; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Cancer Vaccines; Electroporation; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes
PubMed: 37433774
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39759-w -
Journal of Cardiovascular Development... Feb 2024Stroke is a major cause of death and disability globally, with ischemic stroke being the predominant mechanism. While spontaneous recanalization may occur, significant... (Review)
Review
Stroke is a major cause of death and disability globally, with ischemic stroke being the predominant mechanism. While spontaneous recanalization may occur, significant neuronal injury would have occurred in the interim. Intravenous thrombolysis administered within the first 4.5 h after stroke onset and endovascular thrombectomy within 24 h in patients with a salvageable penumbra improves functional independence. Ultrasound has been shown in both in vivo and in vitro models to enhance clot lysis, even more-so in the presence of thrombolytic agents. The use of transcranial Doppler and transcranial color-coded Doppler ultrasound in acute IS has been reported in case series, case-controlled studies, and clinical trials. While ultrasound at a frequency of 300 kHz increases the risk of intracranial hemorrhage, the 2 MHz range ultrasound aids thrombolysis and improves recanalization without significantly increasing the risk of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage. Despite this, functional independence was not increased in clinical trials, nor was a benefit shown with the adjunctive use of microbubbles or microspheres. Nonetheless, newer technologies such as endovascular ultrasound, endovascular delivery of microbubbles, and thrombolytic-filled microbubbles await clinical trials. More evidence is needed before sonothrombolysis can be routinely used in the hyperacute management of ischemic stroke.
PubMed: 38535098
DOI: 10.3390/jcdd11030075 -
Biosensors Aug 2023Surveillance of viral pathogens in both point-of-care and clinical settings is imperative to preventing the widespread propagation of disease-undetected viral outbreaks... (Review)
Review
Surveillance of viral pathogens in both point-of-care and clinical settings is imperative to preventing the widespread propagation of disease-undetected viral outbreaks can pose dire health risks on a large scale. Thus, portable, accessible, and reliable biosensors are necessary for proactive measures. Polymeric microparticles have recently gained popularity for their size, surface area, and versatility, which make them ideal biosensing tools. This review cataloged recent investigations on polymeric microparticle-based detection platforms across eight virus families. These microparticles were used as labels for detection (often with fluorescent microparticles) and for capturing viruses for isolation or purification (often with magnetic microparticles). We also categorized all methods by the characteristics, materials, conjugated receptors, and size of microparticles. Current approaches were compared, addressing strengths and weaknesses in the context of virus detection. In-depth analyses were conducted for each virus family, categorizing whether the polymeric microparticles were used as labels, for capturing, or both. We also summarized the types of receptors conjugated to polymeric microparticles for each virus family.
Topics: Point-of-Care Systems; Polymers
PubMed: 37622906
DOI: 10.3390/bios13080820 -
Materials (Basel, Switzerland) Jul 2023Polymers in the form of films, fibers, nano- and microspheres, composites, and porous supports are promising biomaterials for a wide range of advanced biomedical...
Polymers in the form of films, fibers, nano- and microspheres, composites, and porous supports are promising biomaterials for a wide range of advanced biomedical applications: wound healing, controlling drug delivery, anti-cancer therapy, biosensors, stem cell therapy, and tissue engineering [...].
PubMed: 37512198
DOI: 10.3390/ma16144923 -
Materials (Basel, Switzerland) Sep 2023The science related to biomaterials and tissue engineering accounts for a growing part of our knowledge. Surface modifications of biomaterials, their performance in... (Review)
Review
The science related to biomaterials and tissue engineering accounts for a growing part of our knowledge. Surface modifications of biomaterials, their performance in vitro, and the interaction between them and surrounding tissues are gaining more and more attention. It is because we are interested in finding sophisticated materials that help us to treat or mitigate different disorders. Therefore, efficient methods for surface analysis are needed. Several methods are routinely applied to characterize the physical and chemical properties of the biomaterial surface. Mass Spectrometry Imaging (MSI) techniques are able to measure the information about molecular composition simultaneously from biomaterial and adjacent tissue. That is why it can answer the questions connected with biomaterial characteristics and their biological influence. Moreover, this kind of analysis does not demand any antibodies or dyes that may influence the studied items. It means that we can correlate surface chemistry with a biological response without any modification that could distort the image. In our review, we presented examples of biomaterials analyzed by MSI techniques to indicate the utility of SIMS, MALDI, and DESI-three major ones in the field of biomaterials applications. Examples include biomaterials used to treat vascular system diseases, bone implants with the effects of implanted material on adjacent tissues, nanofibers and membranes monitored by mass spectrometry-related techniques, analyses of drug-eluting long-acting parenteral (LAPs) implants and microspheres where MSI serves as a quality control system.
PubMed: 37763619
DOI: 10.3390/ma16186343 -
Bioengineering & Translational Medicine Nov 2023Sepsis is a severe organ dysfunction typically caused by wound infection which leads to septic shock, organ failure or even death if no early diagnosis and property...
Sepsis is a severe organ dysfunction typically caused by wound infection which leads to septic shock, organ failure or even death if no early diagnosis and property medical treatment were taken. Herein, we report a soft, wearable and battery-free wound dressing system (WDS) for wireless and real-time monitoring of wound condition and sepsis-related biomarker (procalcitonin [PCT]) in wound exudate for early sepsis detection. The battery-free WDS powered by near-field communication enables wireless data transmission, signal processing and power supply, which allows portable intelligent wound caring. The exudate collection associates with soft silicone based microfluidic technologies (exudate collection time within 15 s), that can filtrate contamination at the cell level and enable a superior filtration rate up to 95% with adopting microsphere structures. The battery-free WDS also includes state-of-the-art biosensors, which can accurate detect the pH value, wound temperature, and PCT level and thus for sepsis diagnosis. In vivo studies of SD rats prove the capability of the WDS for continuously monitoring wound condition and PCT concentration in the exudate. As a result, the reported fully integrated WDS provides a potential solution for further developing wearable, multifunctional and on-site disease diagnosis.
PubMed: 38023725
DOI: 10.1002/btm2.10445 -
Drug Discoveries & Therapeutics Jul 2023The use of harmful solvents during the preparation of pharmaceutical formulations is restricted to preserve environment and ensure safety of industrial operations.... (Review)
Review
The use of harmful solvents during the preparation of pharmaceutical formulations is restricted to preserve environment and ensure safety of industrial operations. However, harmful solvents must be used to produce certain formulations. For instance, methylene chloride has been used in the fabrication of polylactic acid (PLA) and poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) microspheres. This review highlights the latest advances in the strategy of PLA or PLGA microsphere production from non-halogenated solvents and describes advantages and limitations of these methods. The study also discusses the development of dry fabrication techniques for microsphere fabrication and the positioning of conventional and dry fabrication in the containment concept for workers' safety.
Topics: Humans; Polylactic Acid-Polyglycolic Acid Copolymer; Polyglycolic Acid; Lactic Acid; Microspheres; Polyesters; Solvents; Particle Size
PubMed: 37245983
DOI: 10.5582/ddt.2023.01008