Human platelets lysate (hPL) is a mixture of growth factors and cytokines able to induce the regeneration of damaged tissues. This study aims at enclosing hPL in a silk fibroin electrospun matrix to expand its utilization. Silk fibroin showed the ability to preserve the hPL activity at temperature up to 60 °C and the manipulation of fibroin's crystallinity provided a tool to modulate the hPL release kinetic. This entails the possibility to fabricate the hPL silk fibroin patches in advance and store them, resulting in an easy and fast accessibility and an expanded use of hPL for wound healing.

Organoids are 3D structures grown from pluripotent stem cells derived from human tissue and serve as in vitro miniature models of human organs. Organoids are expected to revolutionize biomedical research and clinical care. However, organoids are not seen as morally neutral. For instance, tissue donors may perceive enduring personal connections with their organoids, setting higher bars for informed consent and patient participation. Also, several organoid sub-types, e.g., brain organoids and human–animal chimeric organoids, have raised controversy. This systematic review provides an overview of ethical discussions as conducted in the scientific literature on organoids. The review covers both research and clinical applications of organoid technology and discusses the topics informed consent, commercialization, personalized medicine, transplantation, brain organoids, chimeras, and gastruloids. It shows that further ethical research is needed especially on organoid transplantation, to help ensure the responsible development and clinical implementation of this technology in this field.

The stroma is a relevant player in driving and supporting the progression of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), and a large body of evidence highlights its role in hindering the efficacy of current therapies. In fact, the dense extracellular matrix (ECM) characterizing this tumor acts as a natural physical barrier, impairing drug penetration. Consequently, all of the approaches combining stroma-targeting and anticancer therapy constitute an appealing option for improving drug penetration. Several strategies have been adopted in order to target the PDAC stroma, such as the depletion of ECM components and the targeting of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), which are responsible for the increased matrix deposition in cancer. Additionally, the leaky and collapsing blood vessels characterizing the tumor might be normalized, thus restoring blood perfusion and allowing drug penetration. Even though many stroma-targeting strategies have reported disappointing results in clinical trials, the ECM offers a wide range of potential therapeutic targets that are now being investigated. The dense ECM might be bypassed by implementing nanoparticle-based systems or by using mesenchymal stem cells as drug carriers. The present review aims to provide an overview of the principal mechanisms involved in the ECM remodeling and of new promising therapeutic strategies for PDAC.

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