The available data of outcomes of flank hernia repair are not of high quality, and recommendations essentially consist of expert opinions. Operative approach (open vs. laparoscopic) and mesh insertion details have varied, but reasonable results appear possible with a number of techniques.
Postoperative
abdominal adhesions are a common problem after surgery
and can produce serious complications. Current antiadhesive strategies
focus mostly on physical barriers and are unsatisfactory and inefficient.
In this study, we designed and synthesized advanced injectable cream-like
hydrogels with multiple functionalities, including rapid gelation,
self-healing, antioxidation, anti-inflammation, and anti-cell adhesion.
The multifunctional hydrogels were facilely formed by the conjugation
reaction of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) and hyaluronic acid
(HA)-based microgels and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) based on the dynamic
boronic ester bond. The physicochemical properties of the hydrogels
including antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities were systematically
characterized. A mouse cecum–abdominal wall adhesion model
was implemented to investigate the efficacy of our microgel-based
hydrogels in preventing postoperative abdominal adhesions. The hydrogels,
with a high molecular weight HA, significantly decreased the inflammation,
oxidative stress, and fibrosis and reduced the abdominal adhesion
formation, compared to the commercial Seprafilm group or Injury-only
group. Label-free quantitative proteomics analysis demonstrated that
S100A8 and S100A9 expressions were associated with adhesion formation;
the microgel-containing hydrogels inhibited these expressions. The
microgel-containing hydrogels with multifunctionality decreased the
formation of postoperative intra-abdominal adhesions in a murine model,
demonstrating promise for clinical applications.
Plasma fibrinogen (F1) and fibronectin (pFN) polymerize to form a fibrin clot that is both a hemostatic and provisional matrix for wound healing. About 90% of plasma F1 has a homodimeric pair of γ chains (γγF1), and 10% has a heterodimeric pair of γ and more acidic γ′ chains (γγ′F1). We have synthesized a novel fibrin matrix exclusively from a 1:1 (molar ratio) complex of γγ′F1 and pFN in the presence of highly active thrombin and recombinant Factor XIII (rFXIIIa). In this matrix, the fibrin nanofibers were decorated with pFN nanoclusters (termed γγ′F1:pFN fibrin). In contrast, fibrin made from 1:1 mixture of γγF1 and pFN formed a sporadic distribution of “pFN droplets” (termed γγF1+pFN fibrin). The γγ′F1:pFN fibrin enhanced the adhesion of primary human umbilical vein endothelium cells (HUVECs) relative to the γγF1+FN fibrin. Three dimensional (3D) culturing showed that the γγ′F1:pFN complex fibrin matrix enhanced the proliferation of both HUVECs and primary human fibroblasts. HUVECs in the 3D γγ′F1:pFN fibrin exhibited a starkly enhanced vascular morphogenesis while an apoptotic growth profile was observed in the γγF1+pFN fibrin. Relative to γγF1+pFN fibrin, mouse dermal wounds that were sealed by γγ′F1:pFN fibrin exhibited accelerated and enhanced healing. This study suggests that a 3D pFN presentation on a fibrin matrix promotes wound healing.
Following the COVID-19 outbreak, swabs for biological specimen collection were thrust to the forefront of healthcare materials. Swab sample collection and recovery are vital for reducing false negative diagnostic tests, early detection of pathogens, and harvesting DNA from limited biological samples. In this study, we report a new class of nanofiber swabs tipped with hierarchical 3D nanofiber objects produced by expanding electrospun membranes with a solids-of-revolution-inspired gas foaming technique. Nanofiber swabs significantly improve absorption and release of proteins, cells, bacteria, DNA, and viruses from solutions and surfaces. Implementation of nanofiber swabs in SARS-CoV-2 detection reduces the false negative rates at two viral concentrations and identifies SARS-CoV-2 at a 10× lower viral concentration compared to flocked and cotton swabs. The nanofiber swabs show great promise in improving test sensitivity, potentially leading to timely and accurate diagnosis of many diseases.
Surgery remains the only potentially
curative treatment option
for pancreatic cancer, but resections are made more difficult by infiltrative
disease, proximity of critical vasculature, peritumoral inflammation,
and dense stroma. Surgeons are limited to tactile and visual cues
to differentiate cancerous tissue from normal tissue. Furthermore,
translating preoperative images to the intraoperative setting poses
additional challenges for tumor detection, and can result in undetected
and unresected lesions. Thus, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC)
has high rates of incomplete resections, and subsequently, disease
recurrence. Fluorescence-guided surgery (FGS) has emerged as a method
to improve intraoperative detection of cancer and ultimately improve
surgical outcomes. Initial clinical trials have demonstrated feasibility
of FGS for PDAC, but there are limited targeted probes under investigation
for this disease, highlighting the need for development of additional
novel biomarkers to reflect the PDAC heterogeneity. MUCIN16 (MUC16)
is a glycoprotein that is overexpressed in 60–80% of PDAC.
In our previous work, we developed a MUC16-targeted murine antibody
near-infrared conjugate, termed AR9.6–IRDye800, that showed
efficacy in detecting pancreatic cancer. To build on the translational
potential of this imaging probe, a humanized variant of the AR9.6
fluorescent conjugate was developed and investigated herein. This
conjugate, termed huAR9.6–IRDye800, showed equivalent binding
properties to its murine counterpart. Using an optimized dye:protein
ratio of 1:1, in vivo studies demonstrated high tumor
to background ratios in MUC16-expressing tumor models, and delineation
of tumors in a patient-derived xenograft model. Safety, biodistribution,
and toxicity studies were conducted. These studies demonstrated that
huAR9.6–IRDye800 was safe, did not yield evidence of histological
toxicity, and was well tolerated in vivo. The results
from this work suggest that AR9.6-IRDye800 is an efficacious and safe
imaging agent for identifying pancreatic cancer intraoperatively through
fluorescence-guided surgery.
Minimally invasive procedures are becoming increasingly more common in surgery. However, the biomaterials capable of delivering biomimetic, three-dimensional (3D) functional tissues in a minimally invasive manner and exhibiting ordered structures after delivery are lacking. Herein, we reported the fabrication of gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA)-coated, 3D expanded nanofiber scaffolds, and their potential applications in minimally invasive delivery of 3D functional tissue constructs with ordered structures and clinically appropriate sizes (4 cm × 2 cm × 1.5 mm). GelMA-coated, expanded 3D nanofiber scaffolds produced by combining electrospinning, gas-foaming expansion, hydrogel coating, and cross-linking are extremely shape recoverable after release of compressive strain, displaying a superelastic property. Such scaffolds can be seeded with various types of cells, including dermal fibroblasts, bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells, and human neural stem/precursor cells to form 3D complex tissue constructs. Importantly, the developed 3D tissue constructs can be compressed and loaded into a 4 mm diameter glass tube for minimally invasive delivery without compromising the cell viability. Taken together, the method developed in this study could hold great promise for transplantation of biomimetic, 3D functional tissue constructs with well-organized structures for tissue repair and regeneration using minimally invasive procedures like laparoscopy and thoracoscopy.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.