No abstract available.
Hydrogel* ; Hydrogels* ; Regenerative Medicine*

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial and wound healing property of the preformulated hydrogel containing the methanolic leaf extract of Ixora coccinea, as well as its acute dermal irritation using New Zealand rabbits.

Methods. Mature dried leaves of I. coccinea was subjected to extraction using maceration and was concentrated in vacuo. Sodium carboxymethylcellulose and gelatin were used to create hydrogel in which the crude extract was incorporated. Physicochemical properties of the extract and preformulated hydrogel were characterized, while its antimicrobial activities against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Staphylococcus epidermidis were determined using the agar well method and compared to the standard drug 2% w/v mupirocin ointment. A wound excision model in rats was used to determine the wound healing property of the preformulated hydrogel against povidone-iodine ointment. Lastly, animal testing was performed following the OECD Guidelines and upon approval of the IACUC Committee.

Result. The preformulated hydrogel was effective against S. aureus (p-value ? 0.001) but resistant to P. aeruginosa and S. epidermidis. Furthermore, the wound contraction rate in groups treated with preformulated hydrogel (p-value = 0.006) is significantly higher than in groups treated with hydrogel base and povidone-iodine. Moreover, no dermal erythema and edema were observed with albino rabbits.

Conclusion. The preformulated hydrogel with I. coccinea methanolic leaf extract is non-irritating, effective against staphylococcal infections commonly found in wounds. Hence, it is a good substitute for povidone-iodine in wound treatment.

The shortage of medical resources promotes medical treatment reform, and smart healthcare is a promising strategy to solve this problem. With the development of Internet, real-time health status is expected to be monitored at home by using flexible healthcare systems, which puts forward new demands on flexible substrates for sensors. Currently, the flexible substrates are mainly traditional petroleum-based polymers, which are not renewable. As a natural polymer, cellulose, owing to its wide range of sources, convenient processing, biodegradability and so on, is an ideal alternative. In this review, the application progress of nanocellulose in flexible sensors is summarized. The structure and the modification methods of cellulose and nanocellulose are introduced at first, and then the application of nanocellulose flexible sensors in real-time medical monitoring is summarized. Finally, the advantages and future challenges of nanocellulose in the field of flexible sensors are discussed.
Cellulose/chemistry* ; Hydrogels/chemistry* ; Polymers

BACKGROUND: Biopolymeric in situ hydrogels play a crucial role in the regenerative repair and replacement of infected or injured tissue. They possess excellent biodegradability and biocompatibility in the biological system, however only a few biopolymeric in situ hydrogels have been approved clinically. Researchers have been investigating new advancements and designs to restore tissue functions and structure, and these studies involve a composite of biometrics, cells and a combination of factors that can repair or regenerate damaged tissue. METHODS: Injectable hydrogels, cross-linking mechanisms, bioactive materials for injectable hydrogels, clinically applied injectable biopolymeric hydrogels and the bioimaging applications of hydrogels were reviewed. RESULTS: This article reviews the different types of biopolymeric injectable hydrogels, their gelation mechanisms, tissue engineering, clinical applications and their various in situ imaging techniques. CONCLUSION: The applications of bioactive injectable hydrogels and their bioimaging are a promising area in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. There is a high demand for injectable hydrogels for in situ imaging.
Biopolymers* ; Hydrogel* ; Hydrogels* ; Regenerative Medicine ; Tissue Engineering*

In recent years, peptide self-assembly has received much attention because of its ability to form regular and ordered structures with diverse functions. Self-assembled peptides can form aggregates with defined structures under specific conditions. They show different characteristics and advantages (e.g., good biocompatibility and high stability) compared with monomeric peptides, which form the basis for potential application in the fields of drug delivery, tissue engineering, and antiseptics. In this paper, the molecular mechanisms, types and influencing factors of forming self-assembled peptides were reviewed, followed by introducing the latest advances on fibrous peptide hydrogels and self-assembled antimicrobial peptides. Furthermore, the challenges and perspectives for peptide self-assembly technology were discussed.
Drug Delivery Systems ; Hydrogels ; Peptides ; Tissue Engineering

Polymeric hydrogels have been widely researched as drug delivery systems, wound dressings and tissue engineering scaffolds due to their unique properties such as good biocompatibility, shaping ability and similar properties to extracellular matrix. However, further development of conventional hydrogels for biomedical applications is still limited by their poor mechanical properties and self-healing properties. Currently, nanocomposite hydrogels with excellent properties and customized functions can be obtained by introducing nanoparticles into their network, and different types of nanoparticles, including carbon-based, polymer-based, inorganic-based and metal-based nanoparticle, are commonly used. Nanocomposite hydrogels incorporated with polymeric micelles can not only enhance the mechanical properties, self-healing properties and chemical properties of hydrogels, but also improve the
Biocompatible Materials ; Hydrogels ; Micelles ; Nanocomposites ; Polymers

OBJECTIVE: To review the research progress in the construction strategy and application of bone/cartilage immunomodulating hydrogels. METHODS: The literature related to bone/cartilage immunomodulating hydrogels at home and abroad in recent years was reviewed and summarized from the immune response mechanism of different immune cells, the construction strategy of immunomodulating hydrogels, and their practical applications. RESULTS: According to the immune response mechanism of different immune cells, the biological materials with immunoregulatory effect is designed, which can regulate the immune response of the body and thus promote the regeneration of bone/cartilage tissue. Immunomodulating hydrogels have good biocompatibility, adjustability, and multifunctionality. By regulating the physical and chemical properties of hydrogel and loading factors or cells, the immune system of the body can be purposively regulated, thus forming an immune microenvironment conducive to osteochondral regeneration. CONCLUSION Immunomodulating hydrogels can promote osteochondral repair by affecting the immunomodulation process of host organs or cells. It has shown a wide application prospect in the repair of osteochondral defects. However, more data support from basic and clinical experiments is needed for this material to further advance its clinical translation process.
Hydrogels ; Cartilage ; Bone and Bones ; Tissue Engineering/methods*

Four-dimensional (4D) printing is an emerging technology that combines science and engineering techniques. The term, "4D printing" was coined in 2013 and since then it has attracted a lot of interests due to its unique ability to have structural or functional transformations over time in response to external stimuli. The most important element of 4D printing is the responsive material. The recent progress research of hydrogels and related new technologies for 4D printing was summarized in the field of implanted medical devices at home and abroad in this paper. Then, it was pointed out the problems of responsive materials for 4D printing. Finally, it was prospected that the development of 4D printing technology in the field of implantable medical devices.
Hydrogels ; Printing, Three-Dimensional ; Prostheses and Implants

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) not only serves as the material basis of biological inheritance, but also shows great potential in the development of novel biological materials due to its programmability, functional diversity, biocompatibility and biodegradability. DNA hydrogel is a three-dimensional mesh polymer material mainly formed by DNA. It has become one of the most interesting emerging functional polymer materials in recent years because of the perfect combination of the DNA biological properties that it retained and the mechanical properties of its own skeleton. At present, single- or multi-component DNA hydrogels developed based on various functional nucleic acid sequences or by combining different functional materials have been widely used in the field of biomedicine, molecular detection, and environmental protection. In this paper, the development of preparation methods and classification strategies of DNA hydrogels are summarized, and the applications of DNA hydrogels in drug delivery, biosensing and cell culture are also reviewed. Finally, the future development direction and potential challenges of DNA hydrogels are prospected.
DNA/genetics* ; Drug Delivery Systems ; Hydrogels ; Polymers

Silk-based biomaterials are featured with excellent mechanical properties, good biocompatibility and biodegradability, which contribute to their potential applications in biomedical field. The current recognition of silk protein materials in structure and function provides a basic theory for the transformation of silk protein into new types of biomaterials. In addition, exogenous sequences encoding new peptide or structural domain can be inserted into the maternal gene sequences encoding silk proteins through genetic engineering technology to synthesize novel silk-based biomaterials with unique functions. This review summarizes the current trend and development perspective of genetically engineered functional silk-based materials for biomedical applications.
Biocompatible Materials ; Genetic Engineering ; Hydrogels ; Silk