Affinity-Controlled Double-Network Hydrogel Facilitates Long-Term Release of Anti-Human Papillomavirus Protein

3D Printing Cervical Implant Scaffolds Incorporated with Drug-Loaded Carboxylated Chitosan Microspheres for Long-Term Anti-HPV Protein Delivery

As attempting personalized medicine, 3D-printed tissue engineering scaffolds are employed to combine with therapeutic proteins/peptides especially in the clinical treatment of infectious diseases, genetic diseases, and cancers. However, current drug-loading methods, such as immersion and encapsulation, usually lead to the burst release of the drugs. To address these issues, we proposed an integrated strategy toward the long-term controlled release of protein. In this study, patient-customized 3D scaffolds incorporated with drug-loaded microspheres were printed to realize the effective delivery of the anti-human papillomavirus (anti-HPV) protein after cervical conization in the treatment of cervical cancer. The 3D-printed scaffold could provide mechanical support to the defect site and ensure local release of the drug to avoid systemic administration. Meanwhile, microspheres serve as functional components to prevent the inactivation of proteins, as well as regulate their release period to meet the time requirement of different treatment courses. The research also utilized bovine serum albumin as a model protein to validate the feasibility of these scaffolds as a generic technology platform. The bioactivity of the released anti-HPV protein was validated using a pseudovirus model, which demonstrated that the microsphere encapsulation would not cause protein denaturation during the scaffold fabrication process. Besides, 3D-printed scaffolds incorporated with carboxylated chitosan microspheres were biocompatible and beneficial for cell attachment, which have been demonstrated by favorable cell viability and better coverage results for HeLa and HFF-1. This study highlights the great potential of scaffolds incorporated with microspheres to serve as tissue engineering candidate products with the function of effective protein delivery in a long-term controlled manner and personalized shapes for clinical trials.

Recent advances in double network hydrogels based on naturally-derived polymers: synthesis, properties, and biological applications

Hydrogels composed of naturally-derived biopolymers have garnered significant research interest due to the bioavailability and biocompatibility of starting materials. However, translating these advantages to practical use is challenged by limitations of mechanical properties and stability of the resulting materials. The development of double network (DN) hydrogels has led to greatly enhanced mechanical properties and shows promise toward broadening the applications of conventional synthetic or natural hydrogels. This review highlights recently developed protein-based and polysaccharide-based DN hydrogels. For each biopolymer, we focus on a subset of DN hydrogels centered around a theme related to synthetic design or applications. Network structures and crosslinking mechanisms that endow enhanced mechanical properties and performance to the materials are discussed. Important applications, including tissue engineering, drug delivery, bioadhesives, wound healing, and wearable sensors, that arise from the inherent properties of the natural polymer or its combination with other materials are also emphasized. Finally, we discuss ongoing challenges to stimulate the discovery of new design principles for the future of DN hydrogels based on naturally-derived polymers for biological applications.

Role of Polymer Concentration on the Release Rates of Proteins from Single- and Double-Network Hydrogels

Controlled delivery of proteins has immense potential for the treatment of various human diseases, but effective strategies for their delivery are required before this potential can be fully realized. Recent research has identified hydrogels as a promising option for the controlled delivery of therapeutic proteins, owing to their ability to respond to diverse chemical and biological stimuli, as well as their customizable properties that allow for desired delivery rates. This study utilized alginate and chitosan as model polymers to investigate the effects of hydrogel properties on protein release rates. The results demonstrated that polymer properties, concentration, and crosslinking density, as well as their responses to pH, can be tailored to regulate protein release rates. The study also revealed that hydrogels may be combined to create double-network hydrogels to provide an additional metric to control protein release rates. Furthermore, the hydrogel scaffolds were also found to preserve the long-term function and structure of encapsulated proteins before their release from the hydrogels. In conclusion, this research demonstrates the significance of integrating porosity and response to stimuli as orthogonal control parameters when designing hydrogel-based scaffolds for therapeutic protein release.

Collagen type Ⅰ-loaded methacrylamide hyaluronic acid hydrogel microneedles alleviate stress urinary incontinence in mice: A novel treatment and prevention strategy

Stress urinary incontinence (SUI), a chronic disease with widespread effects and an overall prevalence of up to 46% in adult women, is associated with a heavy disease burden. The clinical treatment for mild to moderate SUI is conservative, such as electrical stimulation and Kegel exercises, but the therapeutic effect is unsatisfactory, so it is imperative to seek new treatment modalities. Hydrogel microneedles (MNs) have been widely used in transdermal drug delivery because of their minimally invasive and highly biocompatible characteristics. Therefore, for the first time, we combined collagen type I with MN technology for the treatment and prevention of mild to moderate SUI.

Fabrication and Characterization of Nanocomposite Hydrogel Based on Alginate/Nano-Hydroxyapatite Loaded with Linum usitatissimum Extract as a Bone Tissue Engineering Scaffold

In the current paper, we fabricated, characterized, and applied nanocomposite hydrogel based on alginate (Alg) and nano-hydroxyapatite (nHA) loaded with phenolic purified extracts from the aerial part of Linum usitatissimum (LOH) as the bone tissue engineering scaffold. nHA was synthesized based on the wet chemical technique/precipitation reaction and incorporated into Alg hydrogel as the filler via physical cross-linking. The characterizations (SEM, DLS, and Zeta potential) revealed that the synthesized nHA possess a plate-like shape with nanometric dimensions. The fabricated nanocomposite has a porous architecture with interconnected pores. The average pore size was in the range of 100–200 µm and the porosity range of 80–90%. The LOH release measurement showed that about 90% of the loaded drug was released within 12 h followed by a sustained release over 48 h. The in vitro assessments showed that the nanocomposite possesses significant antioxidant activity promoting bone regeneration. The hemolysis induction measurement showed that the nanocomposites were hemocompatible with negligible hemolysis induction. The cell viability/proliferation confirmed the biocompatibility of the nanocomposites, which induced proliferative effects in a dose-dependent manner. This study revealed the fabricated nanocomposites are bioactive and osteoactive applicable for bone tissue engineering applications.