A choline phosphate (CP) modified surface is designed to resist protein adsorption due to its zwitterionic properties and simultaneously promote cell adhesion though its universal interaction with phosphate choline (PC) headgroups of the cell membrane. This work provides a new approach to obtain a cell-adhesive surface with a non-biofouling 'background', which has a potential for tissue engineering.

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) exhibit significant advantages for efficient drug/gene delivery but it is hard for simple MSNs to deliver the loaded drug to the target sites of disease. Considering that there are some well-known pH differences in the body, it is a useful strategy to modify the exterior surface of MSNs with stimuli-responsive gatekeepers to realize open–close transformation of their mesopores. In this work, multifunctional pH-sensitive MSNs were designed with mixed polymeric coatings, that is, poly­(ethylene glycol) (PEG) as a dispersity-enhancer and poly­(2-(pentamethyleneimino)­ethyl methacrylate) (PPEMA) as an ultra-pH-sensitive gatekeeper. Enhanced dispersity, high drug loading capacity, long-circulation time, pH-triggered targeting, and better cellular uptake of the multifunctional MSNs make them potential candidates for pH-sensitive drug delivery such as tumor therapy.

Implant materials need to be highly biocompatible to avoid inflammation in clinical practice. Although biodegradable polymeric implants can eliminate the need for a second surgical intervention to remove the implant materials, they may produce acidic degradation products in vivo and cause non-bacterial inflammation. Here we show the strategy of “substrate-anchored and degradation-sensitive coatings” for biodegradable implants. Using poly(lactic acid)/hydroxyapatite as an implant material model, we constructed a layer-by-layer coating using pH-sensitive star polymers and dendrimers loaded with an anti-inflammatory drug, which was immobilised through a hydroxyapatite-anchored layer. The multifunctional coating can effectively suppress the local inflammation caused by the degradation of implant materials for at least 8 weeks in vivo. Moreover, the substrate-anchored coating is able to modulate the degradation of the substrate in a more homogeneous manner. The “substrate-anchored and degradation-sensitive coating” strategy therefore exhibits potential for the design of various self-anti-inflammatory biodegradable implant materials.

Dendronized poly(amido amine)s (DPs) bearing tri-phosphate or bis-phosphonate peripheral groups are synthesized. These worm-like DPs can template the formation of BMSCs adhesive hydroxylapatite (HA) on the nano-scale, or self-assemble into mineral-collecting microfibers on the micro-scale, exhibiting similar functions of non-collagenous proteins (NCPs) in the natural biomineralization process of HA.

The construction, characterization and surgical application of a multilayered iron oxide-based macroporous composite framework were reported in this study. The framework consisted of a highly porous iron oxide core, a gelatin-based hydrogel intermediary layer and a matrigel outer cover, which conferred a multitude of desirable properties including excellent biocompatibility, improved mechanical strength and controlled biodegradability. The large pore sizes and high extent of pore interconnectivity of the framework stimulated robust neovascularization and resulted in substantially better cell viability and proliferation as a result of improved transport efficiency for oxygen and nutrients. In addition, rat models with myocardial infraction showed sustained heart tissue regeneration over the infract region and significant improvement of cardiac functions following the surgical implantation of the framework. These results demonstrated that the current framework might hold great potential for cardiac repair in patients with myocardial infraction.

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