Innovative Non-Surgical Plastic Technique for Saddle Nose Correction: A Study on 97 Patients

Background: Non-surgical rhinoplasty is one of the best choices in mild cases of the saddle nose, and it represents a solution for the aesthetical amelioration of facial deformity; nevertheless, in most critical cases, surgical intervention is still required. This study reports the experience and results of a single facial plastic surgeon (M.G.) using a non-surgical technique for the correction of saddle noses in a large cohort of patients. Methods: This retrospective study assesses all patients injected from January 2017 through October 2023 in private clinics in Milan (Italy), London (UK), and Dubai (UAE). All patients were followed up for 12 months. The harvested adipose tissues were processed with different systems and with or without acoustic wave therapy (AWT). The extracted products have been characterized in terms of cellular yield and cell growth. Ninety-seven patients were injected with adipose-derived products or hyaluronic acid (HA). Patients were followed up for 12 months, and satisfaction data were analyzed. Results: The stem cells obtained from the patients who previously received AWT displayed a statistically higher cell growth ability in comparison with those of the cells derived from patients who did not receive AWT. The evolution of patient satisfaction during the time for each group of treatment was investigated, and cellular treatments show the best maintenance of patient satisfaction over time. Conclusions: Dermgraft and AWT approaches resulted in the highest patient satisfaction for the non-surgical correction of the saddle nose deformity.

Gluteal femoral subcutaneous and dermal adipose tissue in female

BACKGROUND

During the sexual maturation, gluteal femoral adipose tissue is subjected to numerous modifications, not observable in other regions, in particular in women and less in men. Other authors described this region, but they used imaging techniques having lower resolution, than MRI proposed in this study. High resolution imaging techniques might provide important and more detailed information about the anatomy of gluteal femoral region.

METHODS

This study has been performed using 7 T-magnetic resonance imaging and ultrastructural analysis in order to provide accurate description of the subcutaneous adipose tissue and dermis of gluteal femoral region. In this study specimens harvested from cadavers and form living patients have been analyzed.

RESULTS

The results showed the presence of three layers: superficial, middle, and deep, characterized by different organization of fat lobules. High resolution imaging showed the adipose papilla that originates from dermis and protrude in subcutaneous adipose tissue. Adipose papilla is characterized by a peculiar morphology with a basement, a neck and a head and these elements represent the functional subunits of adipose papilla. Moreover, ultrastructural study evidenced the relationship between adipocytes and sweat glands, regulated by lipid vesicles.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides important information about subcutaneous and dermal fat anatomy of gluteal femoral region, improving the past knowledge, and move toward a better understanding of the cellulite physiopathology.

Histological analysis of the dermal and hypodermal layers of the face and correlation with high-frequency 24 MHz ultrasonography and elastosonography

Knowledge of the structure of the face is of fundamental importance. In fact, the face is treated in many areas of medicine, from dermatology, to maxillofacial surgery, to otorhinolaryngology, to ophthalmology, etc. and anti-aging aesthetic treatments, and those for the resolution of blemishes are on the increase. For ethical reasons it is not possible to take biopsy samples for facial analysis in the aesthetic field. The main aim of this study was to demonstrate that a high-resolution bimodal ultrasound examination, combined with elastosonography, could be a valid tool for pre-treatment morphological evaluation. To achieve this goal, skin samples were taken from the forehead, zygomatic area, nasolabial fold, upper and lower lip from cadavers to histologically characterize their structure. Subsequently, these same areas were evaluated in vivo using conventional B-mode ultrasound with a 24 MHz high-frequency probe, and elastosonography. The data obtained with the different techniques were compared, in order to state that modern ultrasound techniques can provide similar histological information. The analysis showed that the superficial hypodermis presented a different shape and structure in the different areas, with the exception of the areas of the upper and lower lip, which appeared similar. With aging, the forehead and zygomatic area showed a volumetric increase in the superficial hypodermic layer, while the lip showed non-structural changes. The morphology of the nasolabial fold remained unchanged. When it is not possible to perform histological investigations on the face, to understand its characteristics and dynamics, ultrasound with a 24 MHz probe would seem to be the most suitable method, while elastosonography could be a valid method for evaluating the stiffness of the structural components.

Mechanical Purification of Lipofilling: The Relationship Between Cell Yield, Cell Growth, and Fat Volume Maintenance

BACKGROUND

The mechanical manipulations of fat tissue represented from centrifugation, filtration, washing, and fragmentation were considered the most effective strategies aiming to obtain purified lipofilling with different impacts both in terms of adipose-derived stem cells amount contained in stromal vascular fraction, and fat volume maintenance.

OBJECTIVES

The present work aimed to report results in fat volume maintenance obtained by lipofilling purification based on the combined use of washing and filtration, in a clinical study, and to deeply investigate the adipose-derived stem cells yield and growth capacity of the different stromal vascular fraction extraction techniques with an in vitro approach.

METHODS

A preliminary prospective, case-control study was conducted. 20 patients affected by face and breast soft tissue defects were treated with lipofilling and divided into two groups: n = 10 patients (study group) were treated with lipofilling obtained by washing and filtration procedures, while n = 10 (control group) were treated with lipofilling obtained by centrifugation according to the Coleman technique. 6 months after the lipofilling, the volume maintenance percentage was analyzed by clinical picture and magnetic resonance imaging comparisons. Additionally, extracted stromal vascular fraction cells were also in vitro analyzed in terms of adipose-derived stem cell yield and growth capacity.

RESULTS

A 69% ± 5.0% maintenance of fat volume after 6 months was observed in the study group, compared with 44% ± 5.5% in the control group. Moreover, the cellular yield of the control group resulted in 267,000 ± 94,107 adipose-derived stem cells/mL, while the study group resulted in 528,895 ± 115,853 adipose-derived stem cells /mL, with a p-value = 0.1805. Interestingly, the study group showed a fold increase in cell growth of 6758 ± 0.7122, while the control group resulted in 3888 ± 0.3078, with a p < 0.05 (p = 0.0122).

CONCLUSIONS

The comparison of both groups indicated that washing and filtration were a better efficient system in lipofilling preparation, compared to centrifugation, both in terms of volume maintenance and adipose-derived stem cell growth ability.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III

This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors http://www.springer.com/00266 .

In Vitro Study of a Novel Vibrio alginolyticus-Based Collagenase for Future Medical Application

Mesenchymal stem cells extracted from adipose tissue are particularly promising given the ease of harvest by standard liposuction and reduced donor site morbidity. This study proposes a novel enzymatic method for isolating stem cells using Vibrio alginolyticus collagenase, obtaining a high-quality product in a reduced time. Initially, the enzyme concentration and incubation time were studied by comparing cellular yield, proliferation, and clonogenic capacities. The optimized protocol was phenotypically characterized, and its ability to differentiate in the mesodermal lineages was evaluated. Subsequently, that protocol was compared with two Clostridium histolyticum-based collagenases, and other tests for cellular integrity were performed to evaluate the enzyme's effect on expanded cells. The best results showed that using a concentration of 3.6 mg/mL Vibrio alginolyticus collagenase allows extracting stem cells from adipose tissue after 20 min of enzymatic reaction like those obtained with Clostridium histolyticum-based collagenases after 45 min. Moreover, the extracted cells with Vibrio alginolyticus collagenase presented the phenotypic characteristics of stem cells that remain after culture conditions. Finally, it was seen that Vibrio alginolyticus collagenase does not reduce the vitality of expanded cells as Clostridium histolyticum-based collagenase does. These findings suggest that Vibrio alginolyticus collagenase has great potential in regenerative medicine, given its degradation selectivity by protecting vital structures for tissue restructuration.

Multilineage-Differentiating Stress-Enduring Cells (Muse Cells): An Easily Accessible, Pluripotent Stem Cell Niche with Unique and Powerful Properties for Multiple Regenerative Medicine Applications

Cell-based therapy in regenerative medicine is a powerful tool that can be used both to restore various cells lost in a wide range of human disorders and in renewal processes. Stem cells show promise for universal use in clinical medicine, potentially enabling the regeneration of numerous organs and tissues in the human body. This is possible due to their self-renewal, mature cell differentiation, and factors release. To date, pluripotent stem cells seem to be the most promising. Recently, a novel stem cell niche, called multilineage-differentiating stress-enduring (Muse) cells, is emerging. These cells are of particular interest because they are pluripotent and are found in adult human mesenchymal tissues. Thanks to this, they can produce cells representative of all three germ layers. Furthermore, they can be easily harvested from fat and isolated from the mesenchymal stem cells. This makes them very promising, allowing autologous treatments and avoiding the problems of rejection typical of transplants. Muse cells have recently been employed, with encouraging results, in numerous preclinical studies performed to test their efficacy in the treatment of various pathologies. This review aimed to (1) highlight the specific potential of Muse cells and provide a better understanding of this niche and (2) originate the first organized review of already tested applications of Muse cells in regenerative medicine. The obtained results could be useful to extend the possible therapeutic applications of disease healing.

Highly Pluripotent Adipose-Derived Stem Cell-Enriched Nanofat: A Novel Translational System in Stem Cell Therapy

Fat graft is widely used in plastic and reconstructive surgery. The size of the injectable product, the unpredictable fat resorption rates, and subsequent adverse effects make it tricky to inject untreated fat into the dermal layer. Mechanical emulsification of fat tissue, which Tonnard introduced, solves these problems, and the product obtained was called nanofat. Nanofat is widely used in clinical and aesthetic settings to treat facial compartments, hypertrophic and atrophic scars, wrinkle attenuation, skin rejuvenation, and alopecia. Several studies demonstrate that the tissue regeneration effects of nanofat are attributable to its rich content of adipose-derived stem cells. This study aimed to characterize Hy-Tissue Nanofat product by investigating morphology, cellular yield, adipose-derived stem cell (ASC) proliferation rate and clonogenic capability, immunophenotyping, and differential potential. The percentage of SEEA3 and CD105 expression was also analyzed to establish the presence of multilineage-differentiating stress-enduring (MUSE) cell. Our results showed that the Hy-Tissue Nanofat kit could isolate 3.74 × 10⁴ ± 1.31 × 10⁴ proliferative nucleated cells for milliliter of the treated fat. Nanofat-derived ASC can grow in colonies and show high differentiation capacity into adipocytes, osteocytes, and chondrocytes. Moreover, immunophenotyping analysis revealed the expression of MUSE cell antigen, making this nanofat enriched of pluripotent stem cell, increasing its potential in regenerative medicine. The unique characteristics of MUSE cells give a simple, feasible strategy for treating a variety of diseases.

Mitoxantrone-Loaded Nanoferritin Slows Tumor Growth and Improves the Overall Survival Rate in a Subcutaneous Pancreatic Cancer Mouse Model

Pancreatic cancer (PC) represents an intriguing topic for researchers. To date, the prognosis of metastasized PC is poor with just 7% of patients exceeding a five-year survival period. Thus, molecular modifications of existing drugs should be developed to change the course of the disease. Our previously generated nanocages of Mitoxantrone (MIT) encapsulated in human H-chain Ferritin (HFt), designated as HFt-MP-PASE-MIT, has shown excellent tumor distribution and extended serum half-life meriting further investigation for PC treatment. Thus, in this study, we used the same nano-formulation to test its cytotoxicity using both in vitro and in vivo assays. Interestingly, both encapsulated and free-MIT drugs demonstrated similar killing capabilities on PaCa44 cell line. Conversely, in vivo assessment in a subcutaneous PaCa44 tumor model of PC demonstrated a remarkable capability for encapsulated MIT to control tumor growth and improve mouse survival with a median survival rate of 65 vs. 33 days for loaded and free-MIT, respectively. Interestingly, throughout the course of mice treatment, MIT encapsulation did not present any adverse side effects as confirmed by histological analysis of various murine tissue organs and body mass weights. Our results are promising and pave the way to effective PC targeted chemotherapy using our HFt nanodelivery platforms.