Micromotor-Assisted Keratinocytes Migration in a Floating Paper Chip

3D Bioprinting for Engineered Tissue Constructs and Patient-Specific Models: Current Progress and Prospects in Clinical Applications

Advancements in bioprinting technology are driving the creation of complex, functional tissue constructs for use in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Various methods, including extrusion, jetting, and light-based bioprinting, have their unique advantages and drawbacks. Over the years, researchers and industry leaders have made significant progress in enhancing bioprinting techniques and materials, resulting in the production of increasingly sophisticated tissue constructs. Despite this progress, challenges still need to be addressed in achieving clinically relevant, human-scale tissue constructs, presenting a hurdle to widespread clinical translation. However, with ongoing interdisciplinary research and collaboration, the field is rapidly evolving and holds promise for personalized medical interventions. Continued development and refinement of bioprinting technologies have the potential to address complex medical needs, enabling the development of functional, transplantable tissues and organs, as well as advanced in vitro tissue models.

Magnetic micromotors crossing lipid membranes

Nano/micromotors are self-propelled particles that show enhanced motion upon being triggered by a stimulus. Their use in nanomedicine has been widely explored, with special focus on imaging or drug delivery. However, a thorough understanding of the requirements for more efficient locomotion is still lacking. In this paper, we assembled magnetically propelled motors of different sizes (i.e., 0.5, 1 and 4 μm) and surface chemistries (positive charge or PEGylated) and assessed their motion in the presence of giant unilamellar lipid vesicles (GUVs) of varying compositions (zwitterionic, negatively charged and saturated lipids). Unexpectedly, the size does not seem to be the dominating characteristics that governs the ability of the motors to cross lipid membranes. Specifically, the 0.5 μm PEGylated motors have very limited ability to cross the lipid membrane of GUVs due to their non-interacting nature compared to their equally sized positively charged counterparts. Furthermore, membranes made of saturated lipids and, in particular, in combination with a weak magnetic field facilitate motors' crossing, regardless of their size. The results were validated by in-house data-driven statistical analysis that employs experimental data to allow for the identification of individual motor motion in the ensemble when meeting the lipid membranes. Altogether, we provide insight into motor locomotion when they interact with a biological barrier considering both the entire ensemble and the individual motors, which has the potential to support considerations of future motor designs.

On Nanomachines and Their Future Perspectives in Biomedicine

Nano/micromotors are a class of active matter that can self-propel converting different types of input energy into kinetic energy. The huge efforts that are made in this field over the last years result in remarkable advances. Specifically, a high number of publications have dealt with biomedical applications that these motors may offer. From the first attempts in 2D cell cultures, the research has evolved to tissue and in vivo experimentation, where motors show promising results. In this Perspective, an overview over the evolution of motors with focus on bio-relevant environments is provided. Then, a discussion on the advances and challenges is presented, and eventually some remarks and perspectives of the field are outlined.

Astrocytes in Paper Chips and Their Interaction with Hybrid Vesicles

The role of astrocytes in brain function has received increased attention lately due to their critical role in brain development and function under physiological and pathophysiological conditions. However, the biological evaluation of soft material nanoparticles in astrocytes remains unexplored. Here, the interaction of crosslinked hybrid vesicles (HVs) and either C8-D1A astrocytes or primary astrocytes cultured in polystyrene tissue culture or floatable paper-based chips is investigated. The amphiphilic block copolymer poly(cholesteryl methacrylate)-block-poly(2-carboxyethyl acrylate) (P1) and 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine lipids are used for the assembly of HVs with crosslinked membranes. The assemblies show no short-term toxicity towards the C8-D1A astrocytes and the primary astrocytes, and both cell types internalize the HVs when cultured in 2D cell culture. Further, it is demonstrated that both the C8-D1A astrocytes and the primary astrocytes could mature in paper-based chips with preserved calcium signaling and glial fibrillary acidic protein expression. Last, it is confirmed that both types of astrocytes could internalize the HVs when cultured in paper-based chips. These findings lay out a fundamental understanding of the interaction between soft material nanoparticles and astrocytes, even when primary astrocytes are cultured in paper-based chips offering a 3D environment.