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Biomedical Materials (biomedical + material)
Selected AbstractsBiomedical Materials: Nanoporous Biodegradable Elastomers (Adv. Mater.ADVANCED MATERIALS, Issue 2 20092/2009) The mechanical properties and degradation rate of elastomers can be tailored with nanoporosity. The elastomers described in this study by Guillermo Ameer and co-workers (p. 188) are based on citric acid and are biocompatible. The nanopores also facilitate the entrapment and slow release of macromolecular therapeutics. The inside cover depicts the nano- and microarchitecture of the elastomer prior to pore collapse. [source] Functionalization of Chitosan via Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization for Gene DeliveryADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Issue 18 2010Yuan Ping Abstract It is of crucial importance to modify chitosan-based polysaccharides in the designing of biomedical materials. In this work, atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) was employed to functionalize chitosan in a well-controlled manner. A series of new degradable cationic polymers (termed as PDCS) composed of biocompatible chitosan backbones and poly((2-dimethyl amino)ethyl methacrylate) (P(DMAEMA)) side chains of different length were designed as highly efficient gene vectors via ATRP. These vectors, termed as PDCS, exhibited good ability to condense plasmid DNA (pDNA) into nanoparticles with positive charge at nitrogen/phosphorus (N/P) ratios of 4 or higher. All PDCS vectors could well protect the condensed DNA from enzymatic degradation by DNase I and they displayed high level of transfectivity in both COS7, HEK293 and HepG2 cell lines. Most importantly, in comparison with high-molecular-weight P(DMAEMA) and ,gold-standard' PEI (25 kDa), the PDCS vectors showed considerable buffering capacity in the pH range of 7.4 to 5, and were capable of mediating much more efficient gene transfection at low N/P ratios. At their own optimal N/P ratios for trasnsfection, the PDCS/pDNA complexes showed much lower cytotoxicity. All the PDCS vectors were readily to be degradable in the presence of lysozyme at physiological conditions in vitro. These well-defined PDCS polymers have great potentials as efficient gene vectors in future gene therapy. [source] Multiple Functionalities of Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Films: New Biomedical ApplicationsADVANCED MATERIALS, Issue 4 2010Thomas Boudou Abstract The design of advanced functional materials with nanometer- and micrometer-scale control over their properties is of considerable interest for both fundamental and applied studies because of the many potential applications for these materials in the fields of biomedical materials, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine. The layer-by-layer deposition technique introduced in the early 1990s by Decher, Moehwald, and Lvov is a versatile technique, which has attracted an increasing number of researchers in recent years due to its wide range of advantages for biomedical applications: ease of preparation under "mild" conditions compatible with physiological media, capability of incorporating bioactive molecules, extra-cellular matrix components and biopolymers in the films, tunable mechanical properties, and spatio-temporal control over film organization. The last few years have seen a significant increase in reports exploring the possibilities offered by diffusing molecules into films to control their internal structures or design "reservoirs," as well as control their mechanical properties. Such properties, associated with the chemical properties of films, are particularly important for designing biomedical devices that contain bioactive molecules. In this review, we highlight recent work on designing and controlling film properties at the nanometer and micrometer scales with a view to developing new biomaterial coatings, tissue engineered constructs that could mimic in vivo cellular microenvironments, and stem cell "niches." [source] An efficient approach to synthesize polysaccharides- graft -poly(p -dioxanone) copolymers as potential drug carriersJOURNAL OF POLYMER SCIENCE (IN TWO SECTIONS), Issue 20 2009Fang Lu Abstract Starch and poly(p -dioxanone) (PPDO) are the natural and synthetic biodegradable and biocompatible polymers, respectively. Their copolymers can find extensive applications in biomedical materials. However, it is very difficult to synthesize starch- graft -PPDO copolymers in common organic solvents with very good solubility. In this article, well-defined polysaccharides- graft -poly(p -dioxanone) (SAn -PPDO) copolymers were successfully synthesized via the ring-opening polymerization of p -dioxanone (PDO) with an acetylated starch (SA) initiator and a Sn(Oct)2 catalyst in bulk. The copolymers were characterized via Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, 1H NMR, gel permeation chromatography, thermogravimetric analysis (TG), differential scanning calorimetry, and wide angle x-ray diffraction. The in vitro degradation results showed that the introduction of SA segments into the backbone chains of the copolymers led to an enhancement of the degradation rate, and the degradation rate of SAn -PPDO increased with the increase of SA wt %. Microspheres with an average volume diameter of 20 ,m, which will have potential applications in controlled release of drugs, were successfully prepared by using these new copolymers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 5344,5353, 2009 [source] Synthesis and degradation of biomedical materials based on linear and star shaped polyglycidolsJOURNAL OF POLYMER SCIENCE (IN TWO SECTIONS), Issue 13 2009Helmut Keul Abstract Linear and star shaped polyglycidols (synonym with polyglycerols) are prepared in a controlled ring opening polymerization of protected glycidols. Beside the molar mass and the polydispersity, the architecture of the polyglycidols is controlled by using mono- and multifunctional mono- and polydispers initiators. Copolymers of dissimilarly protected glycidols as well as copolymers with nonfunctional oxiranes were prepared by means of anionic polymerization while copolymers of protected glycidol with tetrahydrofuran were prepared by means of cationic polymerization. Polyethers with functional groups in the side chains (functional polyethers) with special emphasis on polyglycidols (containing hydroxymethyl groups in the side chains) were used to prepare multifunctional polymers and (hetero)grafted polymer brushes via chemical and enzyme catalyzed reaction. The potential of poly(glycidol- graft -,-caprolactone)- co -glycidol) prepared via enzyme catalyzed grafting of polyglycidols using ,-caprolactone as a monomer and Lipase B from Candida antarctica as a catalyst is presented. Finally, comparative degradation studies of densely and loosely grafted polyglycidols are presented and discussed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 3209,3231, 2009 [source] Proliferation- and migration-enhancing effects of ginseng and ginsenoside Rg1 through IGF-I- and FGF-2-signaling pathways on RSC96 Schwann cellsCELL BIOCHEMISTRY AND FUNCTION, Issue 4 2009Ming-Chin Lu Abstract The aim of the present study is to evaluate the proliferation- and migration-enhancing effects of ginseng and its component, ginsenoside (Rg1) on RSC96 Schwann cells. We investigated the molecular signaling pathways, which include: (1) survival signaling, IGFs-IGFIR-Akt-Bcl2 and proliferative signaling, cell cycle factors and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways, (2) migrating and anti-scar signaling, FGF-2-uPA-MMPs. We treated RSC96 cells with different concentrations (100, 200, 300, 400, 500,µg,ml,1) of ginseng and its constituent, Rg1 (5, 10, 15, 20, 25,µg,ml,1). We observed a proliferative effect in a dose-dependent manner by PCNA western blotting assay, MTT assay, and wound healing test. Furthermore, we also found in the results of western blotting assay, ginseng and Rg1 enhance protein expression of IGF-I pathway regulators, cell cycle controlling proteins, and MAPK signaling pathways to promote the cell proliferation. In addition, ginseng and Rg1 also stimulated the FGF-2-uPA-MMP 9 migrating pathway to enhance the migration of RSC96 Schwann cells. Using MAPK chemical inhibitors, U0126, SB203580, and SP600125, the proliferative effects of ginseng and Rg1 on RSC96 cells were identified to be MAPK signaling-dependent. On the basis of the results, applying appropriate doses of ginseng and Rg1 with biomedical materials would be a potential approach for enhancing neuron regeneration. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | ||||||||||