Amino Acid- and Growth Factor-Based Multifunctional Nanocapsules for the Modulation of the Local Microenvironment in Tissue Engineering

Engineering Ag-Decorated Graphene Oxide Nano-Photothermal Platforms with Enhanced Antibacterial Properties for Promoting Infectious Wound Healing

Introduction

Graphene oxide (GO) nanoparticles have emerged as a compelling photothermal agent (PHTA) in the realm of photothermal antibacterial therapy, owing to their cost-effectiveness, facile synthesis, and remarkable photostability. Nevertheless, the therapeutic efficacy of GO nanoparticles is commonly hindered by their inherent drawback of low photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE).

Methods

Herein, we engineer the Ag/GO-GelMA platform by growing the Ag on the surface of GO and encapsulating the Ag/GO nanoparticles into the GelMA hydrogels.

Results

The resulting Ag/GO-GelMA platform demonstrates a significantly enhanced PCE (47.6%), surpassing that of pure GO (11.8%) by more than fourfold. As expected, the Ag/GO-GelMA platform, which was designed to integrate the benefits of Ag/GO nanoparticles (high PCE) and hydrogel (slowly releasing Ag+ to exert an inherent antibacterial effect), has been shown to exhibit exceptional antibacterial efficacy. Furthermore, transcriptome analyses demonstrated that the Ag/GO-GelMA platform could significantly down-regulate pathways linked to inflammation (the MAPK and PI3K-Akt pathways) and had the ability to promote cell migration.

Discussion

Taken together, this study presents the design of a potent photothermal antibacterial platform (Ag/GO-GelMA) aimed at enhancing the healing of infectious wounds. The platform utilizes a handy method to enhance the PCE of GO, thereby making notable progress in the utilization of GO nano-PHTAs.

Effects of tetrahedral DNA nanostructures on the treatment of osteoporosis

Osteoporosis (OP) is a common disease characterized by bone loss and bone tissue microstructure degradation. Drug treatment is a common clinical treatment that aims to increase bone mass and bone density. Tetrahedral DNA nanostructures (TDNs) are three-dimensional tetrahedral frames formed by folding four single-stranded DNA molecules, which have good biological safety and can promote bone regeneration. In this study, a mouse model of OP was established by ovariectomy (OVX) and TDN was injected into the tail vein for 8 weeks. We found that ovariectomized mice could simulate some physiological changes in OP. After treatment with TDNs, some of this destruction in mice was significantly improved, including an increase in the bone volume fraction (BV/TV) and bone trabecular number (Tb. N), decrease in bone separation (Tb. SP), reduction in the damage to the mouse cartilage layer, reduction in osteoclast lacunae in bone trabecula, and reduction in the damage to the bone dense part. We also found that the expression of ALP, β-Catenin, Runx2, Osterix, and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)2 significantly decreased in OVX mice but increased after TDN treatment. Therefore, this study suggests that TDNs may regulate the Wnt/β-Catenin and BMP signalling pathways to improve the levels of some specific markers of osteogenic differentiation, such as Runx2, ALP, and Osterix, to promote osteogenesis, thus showing a therapeutic effect on OP mice.

Recent advances in the development of poly(ester amide)s-based carriers for drug delivery

Biodegradable and biocompatible biomaterials have several important applications in drug delivery. The biomaterial family known as poly(ester amide)s (PEAs) has garnered considerable interest because it exhibits the benefits of both polyester and polyamide, as well as production from readily available raw ingredients and sophisticated synthesis techniques. Specifically, α-amino acid-based PEAs (AA-PEAs) are promising carriers because of their structural flexibility, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. Herein, we summarize the latest applications of PEAs in drug delivery systems, including antitumor, gene therapy, and protein drugs, and discuss the prospects of drug delivery based on PEAs, which provides a reference for designing safe and efficient drug delivery carriers.

An injectable, self-healing, and antioxidant collagen- and hyaluronic acid-based hydrogel mediated with gallic acid and dopamine for wound repair

Injectable self-healing hydrogels with antioxidation are required in wound dressings. Because oxidative damage caused by excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) is a common issue associated with chronic non-healing wounds. Here, collagen (COL) - and hyaluronic acid (HA)-based hydrogel with antioxidant and injectable self-healing mediated with gallic acid (GA) and dopamine (DA) offers unique advantages for wound repair. The hydrogel is constructed by COL-grafted GA (CG), HA-grafted DA (HD) and γ-poly(glutamic acid) (γ-PGA) coupled with 3-aminophenylboric acid (APBA) via the dynamic boronic ester bonds. Rheological measurements and direct visual observation demonstrated the hydrogel's desirable injectability and self-healing properties. Additionally, the hydrogel exhibits tissue adhesion properties. Biocompatibility and cell migration tests showed that the hydrogel promotes cell proliferation and migration. In vitro, antioxidant and intracellular free radical scavenging assays confirmed the hydrogel's antioxidant property and ability to scavenge excess ROS. In vivo wound healing studies have demonstrated that hydrogel can promote angiogenesis, inhibit inflammation, and promote collagen fiber deposition to accelerate wound healing.

Reactive Oxygen Species-Scavenging Nanosystems in the Treatment of Diabetic Wounds

Diabetic wounds are characterized by drug-resistant bacterial infections, biofilm formation, impaired angiogenesis and perfusion, and oxidative damage to the microenvironment. Given their complex nature, diabetic wounds remain a major challenge in clinical practice. Reactive oxygen species (ROS), which have been shown to trigger hyperinflammation and excessive cellular apoptosis, play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of diabetic wounds. ROS-scavenging nanosystems have recently emerged as smart and multifunctional nanomedicines with broad synergistic applicability. The documented anti-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic ability of ROS-scavenging treatments predestines these nanosystems as promising options for the treatment of diabetic wounds. Yet, in this context, the therapeutic applicability and efficacy of ROS-scavenging nanosystems remain to be elucidated. Herein, the role of ROS in diabetic wounds is deciphered, and the properties and strengths of nanosystems with ROS-scavenging capacity for the treatment of diabetic wounds are summarized. In addition, the current challenges of such nanosystems and their potential future directions are discussed through a clinical-translational lens.

Therapeutic Copolymer from Salicylic Acid and l-Phenylalanine as a Nanosized Drug Carrier for Orthotopic Breast Cancer with Lung Metastasis

Nanoparticle (NP)-mediated drug delivery systems are promising for treating various diseases. However, clinical translation has been delayed by a variety of limitations, such as weak drug loading, nonspecific drug leakage, lack of bioactivity, and short blood circulation. These issues are in part due to the unsatisfactory function of biomaterials for nanocarriers. In addition, the synthesis procedures of drug carrier materials, especially polymers, were usually complicated and led to high cost. In this report, a bioactive copolymer of hydroxy acid and amino acid, poly(salicylic acid-co-phenylalanine) (PSP), was developed for the first time via a one-step rapid and facile synthesis strategy. The PSP could self-assemble into NPs (PSP-NPs) to co-load relatively hydrophilic sphingosine kinase 1 inhibitor (PF543 in HCl salt format) and highly hydrophobic paclitaxel (PTX) to form PF543/PTX@PSP-NPs with efficient dual drug loading. Encouragingly, PF543/PTX@PSP-NPs showed long blood circulation, good stability, and high tumor accumulation, leading to significantly enhanced therapeutic effects on breast cancer. Furthermore, PF543/PTX@PSP-NPs could additionally suppress the lung metastasis of breast cancer, and more importantly, the PSP-NPs themselves as therapeutic nanocarriers also showed an anti-breast cancer effect. With these combined advantages, this new polymer and corresponding NPs will provide valuable insights into the development of new functional polymers and nanomedicines for important diseases.

Oral Delivery of Protein Drugs via Lysine Polymer-Based Nanoparticle Platforms

Oral delivery of proteins has opened a new perspective for the treatment of different diseases. However, advances of oral protein formulation are usually hindered by protein susceptibility and suboptimal absorption in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Polymeric nano drug delivery systems are considered revolutionary candidates to solve these issues, which can be preferably tunable against specific delivery challenges. Herein, a tailored family of lysine-based poly(ester amide)s (Lys-aaPEAs) is designed as a general oral protein delivery platform for efficient protein loading and protection from degradation. Insulin, as a model protein, can achieve effective internalization by epithelial cells and efficient transport across the intestinal epithelium layer into the systemic circulation, followed by controlled release in physiological environments. After the oral administration of insulin carried by Lys-aaPEAs with ornamental hyaluronic acid (HA), mice with type 1 diabetes mellitus showed an acceptable hypoglycemic effect with alleviated complications. A successful oral insulin delivery is associated with patient comfort and convenience and simultaneously avoids the risk of hypoglycemia compared with injections, which is of great feasibility for daily diabetes therapy. More importantly, this versatile Lys-aaPEAs polymeric library can be recognized as a universal vehicle for oral biomacromolecule delivery, providing more possibilities for treating various diseases.

Tomato based gelatin methacryloyl hydrogel as an effective natural and low-cost scaffold for accelerative wound healing

Oxidative stress and infection are the main reasons for postponement of wound healing rate. They can potentially lead to serious inflammation and eventually lead to a longer and more painful recovery phase. Although wound dressings based on synthetic materials with antioxidative property have been proved to exhibit remarkable effect in controlling ROS level and improving wound healing, issues, such as high cost in raw materials, complicated procedures, usage of various toxic additives, and potential allergies, have significantly confined further clinical applications. In this study, a novel type of tissue engineering scaffold, based on tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicon) and gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA), was prepared via facile lyophilization and photo cross-link method (SL/GelMA). By taking advantages of various antioxidative components, such as carotenoids, flavonoids, phenolic acids, vitamin E, and vitamin C in tomatoes, SL/GelMA can effectively regulate ROS level, relieve the oxidative stress in wound bed, promote cell migration and angiogenesis, contribute to collagen deposition, and thus accelerate the rate of wound enclosure. Along with its high biocompatibility and low allergic potential, we believe that the food-derived wound dressing with facile preparation method, easy accessibility, and high cost-effectiveness can be translated for clinical treatments of various chronic wounds.

Emerging Bioactive Agent Delivery-Based Regenerative Therapies for Lower Genitourinary Tissues

Injury to lower genitourinary (GU) tissues, which may result in either infertility and/or organ dysfunctions, threatens the overall health of humans. Bioactive agent-based regenerative therapy is a promising therapeutic method. However, strategies for spatiotemporal delivery of bioactive agents with optimal stability, activity, and tunable delivery for effective sustained disease management are still in need and present challenges. In this review, we present the advancements of the pivotal components in delivery systems, including biomedical innovations, system fabrication methods, and loading strategies, which may improve the performance of delivery systems for better regenerative effects. We also review the most recent developments in the application of these technologies, and the potential for delivery-based regenerative therapies to treat lower GU injuries. Recent progress suggests that the use of advanced strategies have not only made it possible to develop better and more diverse functionalities, but also more precise, and smarter bioactive agent delivery systems for regenerative therapy. Their application in lower GU injury treatment has achieved certain effects in both patients with lower genitourinary injuries and/or in model animals. The continuous evolution of biomaterials and therapeutic agents, advances in three-dimensional printing, as well as emerging techniques all show a promising future for the treatment of lower GU-related disorders and dysfunctions.

Hyaluronic acid-based glucose-responsive antioxidant hydrogel platform for enhanced diabetic wound repair

Hyaluronic acid (HA)-based antioxidant hydrogels have achieved remarkable results in diabetic wound repair. However, the realization of their glucose-responsive antioxidant functions remains a significant challenge. In this study, we modified hyaluronic acid methacrylate (HAMA) with phenylboronic acid (PBA) and developed a glucose-responsive HA derivative (HAMA-PBA). A glucose-responsive HAMA-PBA/catechin (HMPC) hydrogel platform was then fabricated by forming a borate ester bond between HAMA-PBA and catechin. The results showed that the HMPC hybrid hydrogel not only had a three-dimensional network structure and Young's modulus similar to those of skin tissue, but also possessed biocompatibility. The HMPC hydrogel also showed unique glucose-responsive catechin release behavior and remarkable antioxidant capability, which could effectively eliminate intracellular reactive oxygen species and protect cells from oxidative stress damage (increased superoxide dismutase activity, stabilized reduced glutathione/oxidized glutathione ratio, and reduced malondialdehyde content). Additionally, in vitro and in vivo experimental results showed that the HMPC hydrogel effectively promoted angiogenesis (enhanced VEGF and CD31 expression) and reduced inflammatory responses (decreased IL-6 level and increased IL-10 level), thus rapidly repairing diabetic wounds (within three weeks). This was a significant improvement as compared to that observed for the untreated control group and the HMP hydrogel group. These results indicated the potential for the application of the HMPC hydrogel for treating diabetic wounds. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: At present, the delayed closure rate of diabetic chronic wounds caused by excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) remains a worldwide challenge. Hyaluronic acid (HA)-based antioxidant hydrogels have made remarkable achievements in diabetic wound repair; however, the realization of their glucose-responsive antioxidant functions is a tough challenge. In this work, we developed a novel HA-based hydrogel platform with glucose-responsive antioxidant activity for rapid repair of diabetic wounds. In vitro and in vivo experimental results showed that the HMPC hydrogel could effectively promote angiogenesis (enhanced VEGF and CD31 expression) and reduce inflammatory response (decreased IL-6 level and increased IL-10 level), thus rapidly repairing diabetic wounds (within 3 weeks). These results indicated the potential of the HMPC hydrogel for application in diabetic wound treatment.

Engineering Robust Ag-Decorated Polydopamine Nano-Photothermal Platforms to Combat Bacterial Infection and Prompt Wound Healing

Polydopamine (PDA) nanoparticles have emerged as an attractive biomimetic photothermal agent in photothermal antibacterial therapy due to their ease of synthesis, good biodegradability, long-term safety, and excellent photostability. However, the therapeutic effects of PDA nanoparticles are generally limited by the low photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE). Herein, PDA@Ag nanoparticles are synthesized via growing Ag on the surface of PDA nanoparticles and then encapsulated into a cationic guar gum (CG) hydrogel network. The optimized CG/PDA@Ag platform exhibits a high PCE (38.2%), which is more than two times higher than that of pure PDA (16.6%). More importantly, the formulated CG/PDA@Ag hydrogel with many active groups can capture and kill bacteria through effective interactions between hydrogel and bacteria, thereby benefiting the antibacterial effect. As anticipated, the designed CG/PDA@Ag system combined the advantages of PDA@Ag nanoparticles (high PCE) and hydrogel (preventing aggregation of PDA@Ag nanoparticles and possessing inherent antibacterial ability) is demonstrated to have superior antibacterial efficacy both in vitro and in vivo. This study develops a facile approach to boost the PCE of PDA for photothermal antibacterial therapy, providing a significant step forward in advancing the application of PDA nano-photothermal agents.

Architecting polyelectrolyte hydrogels with Cu-assisted polydopamine nanoparticles for photothermal antibacterial therapy

Polydopamine nanoparticles (PDA NPs) are an appealing biomimetic photothermal agent for photothermal antibacterial treatment because of their long-term safety, excellent photostability, accessible manufacturing, and good biodegradability. However, the low photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) of PDA NPs requires high-power and long-term near-infrared light irradiation, which severely restricts their practical application. In this work, PDA@Cu NPs were fabricated by growing Cu NPs in situ on the surface of PDA and then introduced into a polyelectrolyte hydrogel precursor (cationic polyethyleneimine/anionic pectin, named as CPAP). The formulated photothermal platform possessed a high PCE (55.4%), almost twice as much as pure PDA NPs (30.8%). Moreover, the designed CPAP/PDA@Cu captured and killed some bacteria by electrostatic adsorption, which helped enhance the antibacterial performance. As expected, the formed CPAP/PDA@Cu that combined the advantageous features of PDA@Cu NPs (high PCE) and CPAP matrix (inherent antibacterial activity and preventing NPs aggregation) can efficiently kill bacteria both in vitro and in vivo under the help of near-infrared laser irradiation. Taken together, this study offers a promising strategy for constructing a facile and safe PDA-based photothermal agent for photothermal antibacterial therapy.

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A facile polyelectrolyte photothermal antibacterial platform (CPAP) was synthesized.

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CPAP is composed of polyethyleneimine, pectin and polydopamine@Cu nanoparticles.

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CPAP displayed good biocompatibility and tunable physicochemical properties.

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CPAP possessed outstanding high-efficiency bacteria-killing capability.

Novel Glucose-Responsive Antioxidant Hybrid Hydrogel for Enhanced Diabetic Wound Repair

Antioxidant hydrogel has exhibited great potential for diabetic wound treatment. However, it is still a difficult challenge to realize reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging in an intelligent manner. Herein, we designed a novel glucose-responsive antioxidant hybrid hydrogel for enhanced diabetic wound repair. In this study, phenylboronic acid (PBA) with unique glucose-sensitivity was modified onto a hyaluronic acid (HA) chain by one-step synthesis, which was then incorporated into a polyethylene glycol diacrylates (PEG-DA) hydrogel matrix to obtain a novel hybrid hydrogel (PEG-DA/HA-PBA). Then, myricetin (MY) molecules with strong antioxidant activity were immobilized into the hybrid hydrogel by the formation of a dynamic borate bond between the polyphenol group of MY and the phenylboronic acid group of HA-PBA. The PEG-DA/HA-PBA/MY (PHM) hybrid hydrogel achieved glucose-triggered MY release, efficient ROS-scavenging (>80.0%), and also reshaped the hostile oxidative wound microenvironment (reduced MDA activity and increased SOD and GSH/GSSG levels). Furthermore, in vitro and in vivo results indicated that the PHM hydrogel platform effectively ameliorated the inflammatory response (decreased IL-6 and increased Il-10 expression), accelerated angiogenesis (increased VEGF and CD 31 expression), and increased tissue remodeling within 20 days, which was better than the nonresponsive PEG-DA/MY (PM) hydrogel platform in promoting diabetic wound healing. All results strongly suggested that this novel glucose-responsive antioxidant hybrid hydrogel platform has great potential in diabetic wound repair.

Exploration of the Wound Healing Potential of Thermoplastic Polyurethane Electrospun Membrane Incorporated with Phenolic Acids in Spenceria ramalana Trimen

Wound healing process is usually accompanied by infection and the wound dressing loaded with antibiotics is usually used to treat skin wound. However, the intensive use of antibiotics may lead to development of resistance and the antibiotic resistance has become a major global problem. Finding new wound dressing with sustained antibacterial property to overcome the problem of resistance is one of clinical challenge. In this work, phenolic acids in Spenceria ramalana Trimen and sliver nanoparticle incorporated thermoplastic polyurethane nanofibrous membrane (TPU/AgNPs/TPA) are fabricated via electrospinning. The TPU/AgNPs/TPA membrane exhibits excellent physicochemical properties with uniform morphology, good mechanical capacity, and appropriate hydrophilia providing suitable environment for wound healing. Moreover, the TPU/AgNPs/TPA membrane shows mild antioxidant property and exhibits continuous antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli especially against drug-resistant E. coli. The antibacterial efficiency is as high as 99% lasting for 36 h. Furthermore, the TPU/AgNPs/TPA membrane used as wound dressing can accelerate wound healing through downregulating TNF-α and IL-1β and upregulating vascular endothelial growth factor and epidermal growth factor. Therefore, the TPU/AgNPs/TPA membrane presented in this work with good antibacterial activity is an excellent wound dressing and has great potential in wound healing applications to overcome the problem of resistance.

In vivo metabolizable branched poly(ester amide) based on inositol and amino acids as a drug nanocarrier for cancer therapy

Amino acid-based poly(ester amide) (PEA) has been utilized for various biomedical applications due to its tunable mechanical properties, good biocompatibility, and biodegradability. However, bioactive components have rarely been incorporated into the PEA structure, and there has been no systematic investigation of amino acid-based PEAs with branched structures. Herein, an in vivo metabolizable branched poly(ester amide) (BPEA) was synthesized from inositol (a natural growth factor) and amino acids for drug delivery in cancer therapy. The bioactive components, inositol, arginine, and phenylalanine, could improve the biocompatibility of the BPEA nanocarrier, and convert into other valuable biomolecules (phosphatidylinositol for cell signaling, functional protein, or other amino acids including ornithine, citrulline, and tyrosine) after accomplishing drug delivery and biodegradation. Paclitaxel (PTX) was encapsulated into BPEA nanocarriers to formulate drug-loaded BPEA nanoparticles (BPEA@PTX NPs). In vitro results indicated that BPEA@PTX NPs had a sub 100 nm size and could effectively inhibit the growth and migration of cancer cells. In vivo experiments further demonstrated significant suppression of tumor size compared with that with free PTX. Both in vitro and in vivo results confirmed the superior biosafety of BPEA, indicating that BPEA exhibits excellent biocompatibility and considerable potential as a drug carrier.

Green Nanoparticle Scavengers against Oxidative Stress

The usage of exogenous antioxidant materials to relieve oxidative stress offers an important strategy for the therapy of oxidative stress-induced injuries. However, the fabrication processes toward the antioxidant materials usually require the involvement of extra metal ions and organic agents, as well as sophisticated purification steps, which might cause tremendous environmental stress and induce unpredictable side effects in vivo. To address these issues, herein, we proposed a novel strategy to fabricate green nanoparticles for efficiently modulating oxidative stress, which was facilely prepared from tea polyphenol extracts (originated from green tea) via a green enzymatic polymerization-based chemistry method. The resulting nanoparticles possessed a uniform spherical morphology and good stability in water and biomedium and demonstrated excellent radical scavenging properties. These nanoparticle scavengers could effectively prevent intracellular oxidative damage, accelerate wound recovery, and protect the kidneys from reactive oxygen species damaging in the acute kidney injury model. We hope this work will inspire the further development of more types of green nanoparticles for antioxidant therapies via similar synthetic strategies using green biomass materials.

Glucose oxidase and Fe3O4/TiO2/Ag3PO4 co-embedded biomimetic mineralization hydrogels as controllable ROS generators for accelerating diabetic wound healing

The hyperglycemic environment and the presence of bacterial infections delay the healing of diabetic wounds. Herein, glucose oxidase (GOx) and Fe₃O₄/TiO₂/Ag₃PO₄ were embedded in a polyacrylic acid-calcium phosphate (PAA-CaPs@Nps@GOx) hydrogel through an in situ biomimetic mineralization approach. The GOx encapsulation efficiency was 96.75% and exhibited exceptional enzyme activity stability. Moreover, the co-immobilization of GOx and Fe₃O₄/TiO₂/Ag₃PO₄ nanoparticles generated a simple and multifunctional antibacterial platform with the advantages of decreasing blood glucose concentration and efficiently producing reactive oxygen species (ROS). In addition, the degradation rate of the hydrogel was controlled by regulating the concentration of phosphate thus controlling the release of Fe₃O₄/TiO₂/Ag₃PO₄ and GOx. As a result, both the potential toxicity and oxidative stress associated with the antimicrobial biomaterial can be controlled within the body therefore potentially preventing detriment. In vivo results indicated that the PAA-CaPs@Nps@GOx hydrogel effectively promoted diabetic wound healing and showed great potential for clinical applications of chronic wound management.

Fabrication of a Polylactide-Glycolide/Poly-ε-Caprolactone/Dextran/Plastrum Testudinis Extract Composite Anti-Inflammation Nanofiber Membrane via Electrospinning for Annulus Fibrosus Regeneration

Tissue engineering is a promising approach for the treatment of chronic lower back pain (LBP) caused by intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) resulting from degeneration and inflammation of annulus fibrosus (AF) tissue. However, scaffold with an anti-inflammatory effect on AF cells has not been reported. In this study, we fabricated a polylactide-glycolide (PLGA)/poly-ε-caprolactone (PCL)Zdextran (DEX) composite membrane loaded with plastrum testudinis extract (PTE), a Traditional Chinese Medicine herbal extract, via electrospinning. The membranes were characterized by mechanical measurements and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Using an in vitro inflammation model induced by interleukin (IL)-1β, the cytocompatibility and anti-inflammatory effects of the composites were investigated by CCK-8 assay and flow cytometry. Potential regulatory mechanisms were examined by RT-qPCR and Western blotting. The results showed that the P10P8D2 (PLGA 10 g, PCL 8 g, DEX 2 g) composite nanofiber membrane exhibited the most uniform diameter distribution, best mechanical properties, a moderate degradation rate, and the best cytocompatibility characteristics. The optimal concentration of PTE was 120 µg/mL. Importantly, P10P8D2 combined with PTE exhibited anti-inflammatory and cell proliferation promotion effects. Moreover, the NF-κBB/NLRP3/IL-β signaling pathway was inactivated. Our findings suggested that the nanofiber membrane composed of P10P8D2 and PTE has anti-inflammatory and pro-proliferation effects on AF cells. It may provide an effective strategy for AF tissue regeneration.

ε‑Polylysine-stabilized agarose/polydopamine hydrogel dressings with robust photothermal property for wound healing

Polydopamine (PDA) is emerging as an attractive photothermal agent due to its good photothermal performance and excellent biocompatibility. However, without chemical modification, PDA is normally unstable and usually leached out from the constructed biomaterials, realistically limiting its application space. Here, we constructed a new hydrogel dressing with robust and stable photothermal performance by introduction of ε-Polylysine (ε-PL) into agarose/PDA matrix to efficiently lock PDA. By optimizing PDA/ε-PL rational dose in agarose network structure, a hybrid agarose/PDA/ε-PL hydrogel (ADPH) with stable photothermal functionality and desirable physicochemical properties could be achieved. ADPH possessed satisfactory microbicidal efficacy in vivo, which enabled the bacteria-infected skin wound to be cured quickly by successful suppressing inflammation, accelerating collagen deposition and promoting angiogenesis in a bacterial-infected wound model. Collectively, this study illustrates a simple, convenient but powerful strategy to design functionally stable ADPH dressing for treating dermal wounds, which could open vistas in clinical wound management.

Electrospinning nanofibrous graft preparation and wound healing studies using ZnO nanoparticles and glucosamine loaded with poly(methyl methacrylate)/polyethylene glycol

As wound dressing materials, electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds have a lot of promise. Electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds in combination with ZnO nanoparticles have antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, making electrospinning a successful technique for wound dressings.