The human oral microbiome harbors one of the most diverse microbial communities in the human body, playing critical roles in oral and systemic health. Recent technological innovations are propelling the characterization and manipulation of oral microbiota. High-throughput sequencing enables comprehensive taxonomic and functional profiling of oral microbiomes. New long-read platforms improve genome assembly from complex samples. Single-cell genomics provides insights into uncultured taxa. Advanced imaging modalities including fluorescence, mass spectrometry, and Raman spectroscopy have enabled the visualization of the spatial organization and interactions of oral microbes with increasing resolution. Fluorescence techniques link phylogenetic identity with localization. Mass spectrometry imaging reveals metabolic niches and activities while Raman spectroscopy generates rapid biomolecular fingerprints for classification. Culturomics facilitates the isolation and cultivation of novel fastidious oral taxa using high-throughput approaches. Ongoing integration of these technologies holds the promise of transforming our understanding of oral microbiome assembly, gene expression, metabolites, microenvironments, virulence mechanisms, and microbe-host interfaces in the context of health and disease. However, significant knowledge gaps persist regarding community origins, developmental trajectories, homeostasis versus dysbiosis triggers, functional biomarkers, and strategies to deliberately reshape the oral microbiome for therapeutic benefit. The convergence of sequencing, imaging, cultureomics, synthetic systems, and biomimetic models will provide unprecedented insights into the oral microbiome and offer opportunities to predict, prevent, diagnose, and treat associated oral diseases.
Humans ; Phylogeny ; Biomimetics ; Dysbiosis ; Homeostasis ; Mass Spectrometry

Cancer cell membrane (CCM) derived nanotechnology functionalizes nanoparticles (NPs) to recognize homologous cells, exhibiting translational potential in accurate tumor therapy. However, these nanoplatforms are majorly generated from fixed cell lines and are typically evaluated in cell line-derived subcutaneous-xenografts (CDX), ignoring the tumor heterogeneity and differentiation from inter- and intra- individuals and microenvironments between heterotopic- and orthotopic-tumors, limiting the therapeutic efficiency of such nanoplatforms. Herein, various biomimetic nanoplatforms (CCM-modified gold@Carbon, i.e., Au@C-CCM) were fabricated by coating CCMs of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cell lines and patient-derived cells on the surface of Au@C NP. The generated Au@C-CCMs were evaluated on corresponding CDX, tongue orthotopic xenograft (TOX), immune-competent primary and distant tumor models, and patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models. The Au@C-CCM generates a photothermal conversion efficiency up to 44.2% for primary HNSCC therapy and induced immunotherapy to inhibit metastasis via photothermal therapy-induced immunogenic cell death. The homologous CCM endowed the nanoplatforms with optimal targeting properties for the highest therapeutic efficiency, far above those with mismatched CCMs, resulting in distinct tumor ablation and tumor growth inhibition in all four models. This work reinforces the feasibility of biomimetic NPs combining modular designed CMs and functional cores for customized treatment of HNSCC, can be further extended to other malignant tumors therapy.
Animals ; Humans ; Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck/therapy* ; Heterografts ; Photothermal Therapy ; Biomimetics ; Disease Models, Animal ; Head and Neck Neoplasms/therapy* ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Tumor Microenvironment

Heterologous biomimetic synthesis of the active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) is a new mode of resource acquisition and has shown great potential in the protection and development of TCM resources. According to synthetic biology and by constructing biomimetic microbial cells and imitating the synthesis of active ingredients in medicinal plants and animals, the key enzymes obtained from medicinal plants and animals are scientifically designed and systematically reconstructed and optimized to realize the heterologous synthesis of the active ingredients in microorganisms. This method ensures an efficient and green acquisition of target products, and also achieves large-scale industrial production, which is conducive to the production of scarce TCM resources. Additiona-lly, the method playes a role in agricultural industrialization, and provides a new option for promoting the green and sustainable deve-lopment of TCM resources. This review systematically summarized the important progress in the heterologous biomimetic synthesis of TCM active ingredients from three research areas: biosynthesis of terpenoids, flavonoids, phenylpropanoids, alkaloids and other active ingredients, key points and difficulties in heterologous biomimetic synthesis, and biomimetic cells with complex TCM ingredients. This study facilitated the application of new generation of biotechnology and theory to the development of TCM.
Animals ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; Biomimetics ; Plants, Medicinal ; Alkaloids

Objective: To investigate the efficacy and safety of a new cervical artificial disc prosthesis in the treatment of cervical degenerative diseases. Methods: The clinical data of 18 patients with single-level cervical degenerative diseases who underwent three dimensional printed anatomical bionic cervical disc replacement at Department of Spinal Surgery,Honghui Hospital,Xi'an Jiaotong University from May 2019 to July 2020 were analyzed retrospectively. There were 7 males and 11 females,aged (45±8) years old(range:28 to 58 years).The surgical segment was located at C_3－4 level in 2 cases, C_4－5 level in 5 cases, C_5－6 level in 9 cases, and C_6－7 level in 2 cases.The clinical and radiographic outcomes were recorded and compared at preoperative,postoperative times of one month and twelve months.The clinical assessments contained Japanese orthopedic association (JOA) score,neck disability index (NDI) and visual analogue scale (VAS).Imaging assessments included range of motion (ROM) of cervical spine, prosthesis subsidence and prosthesis anteroposterior migration.Repeated measurement variance analysis was used for comparison between groups,and paired t test was used for pairwise comparison. Results: All patients underwent the operation successfully and were followed up for more than 12 months.Compared with preoperative score,the JOA score,NDI and VAS were significantly improved after surgery (all P<0.01).There was no significant difference in postoperative ROM compared with 1-and 12-month preoperative ROM (t=1.570,P=0.135;t=1.744,P=0.099). The prosthesis subsidence was (0.29±0.13) mm (range: 0.18 to 0.50 mm) at 12-month postoperatively.The migration of prosthesis at 12-months postoperatively were (0.71±0.20) mm (range: 0.44 to 1.08 mm).There was no prosthesis subsidence or migration>2 mm at 12-month postoperatively. Conclusion: Three dimensional printed anatomical biomimetic cervical artificial disc replacement has a good early clinical effect in the treatment of cervical degenerative diseases, good mobility can be obtained while maintaining stability.
Adult ; Biomimetics ; Cervical Vertebrae/surgery* ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc/surgery* ; Intervertebral Disc Degeneration/surgery* ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Retrospective Studies ; Total Disc Replacement/methods* ; Treatment Outcome

Dental enamel biomimetic mineralization is a process to form the enamel-like mineral structures, which possess unique microstructure and exceptional physic-chemical properties, by mimicking the mechanism of natural enamel formation and biomineralization. Varieties of techniques such as molecular mimetic synthesis and molecular self-assembling were used to accomplish the microenvironment and molecular conditions similar to that of natural tooth enamel within human body. Early remineralization and biomineralization is the future of restoration for enamel defect, research on such products have huge potential in clinical applications, with speedy advancement in recent two decades. This review summarizes the major advances in researches on enamel biomimetic mineralization in recent years.
Biomimetics ; Dental Enamel ; Humans ; Minerals

OBJECTIVES: Glioma is the most common primary intracranial tumor and there is still no ideal treatment at present. Gene therapy, as one of the new methods for treating glioma, has attracted attention in recent years. But its application in treating glioma is very limited due to lack of effective delivery vectors. This study aims to investigate the feasibility of biomimetic nanomaterials made from glioma cells-derived extracellular vesicles (EV) for targeted delivery of signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3)-small interfering RNA (siRNA) in treating glioma. METHODS: First, U251 glioma cells-derived extracellular vessel (EVU251) was extracted by ultra-centrifugal method. Nanoparticle tracking analysis was used to characterize the particle size distribution, the transmission electron microscope was used to analyze the morphology, and Western blotting was used to verify the expression of srface characteristic protein. The homing ability was verified by cell uptake assay after labeling EVU251 with membrane dye kit PKH67; the EVU251 contents were removed by a low permeability method and then EVMU251 was prepared through a microporous membrane. Finally, the biomimetic nanomaterials EVMU251@STAT3-siRNA were prepared by loading STAT3-SiRNA with electro-dyeing method. The real-time quantitative PCR was used to quantify the successful encapsulation of siRNA, and the encapsulation and drug loading rate was calculated; then Cy5-labeled siRNA was used to evaluate the ability of biomimetic nanomaterials (EVMU251@CY5-siRNA) to target U251 cells. Lysosomal escape ability of the biomimetic nanomaterial was evaluated by lysosomal dye lyso-tracker green. At last, the ability of EVMU251@STAT3-siRNA to knock down STAT3 gene and selective killing of U251 cells was detected by cell experiments in vitro. RESULTS: The size of EVU251 ranged from 50 nm to 200 nm with a natural disc shape. The expression of extracellular vesicle marker proteins could be detected on the membrane of EVU251. The cell uptake assay demonstrated that it had homing ability to target U251 cells. After EVU251 was prepared as EVMU251@STAT3-siRNA, the particle size was (177.9±5.0) nm, the siRNA loading rate was (33.5±2.2)% and the drug loading rate was (3.24±0.21)%. The biomimetic nanomaterial EVMU251@STAT3-siRNA still had the ability to target U251 cells and successfully deliver siRNA to the cytoplasm without lysosomal degradation. The EVMU251@STAT3-siRNA can effectively knock down the expression of STAT3 gene and produce selective killing ability in U251 cells. CONCLUSIONS The biomimetic nanomaterials EVMU251@STAT3-siRNA made from glioma U251 cells-derived extracellular vesicles can knock down STAT3 gene of U251 cells and produce selective killing effect, which can provide a new idea for the treatment of glioma.
Humans ; RNA, Small Interfering/genetics* ; Biomimetics ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Glioma/therapy* ; Nanostructures ; Cell Proliferation ; STAT3 Transcription Factor/metabolism*

Oromaxillofacial hard tissue defects is still a difficult problem in clinical treatment. Regeneration of oromaxillofacial hard tissue based on tissue engineering technology has a good clinical application prospect. The functional modification of scaffolds is one of key factors that influence the outcome of tissue regeneration. The biomimetic design of biomaterials through simulating the natural structure and composition of oromaxillofacial hard tissue has gradually become a research hotspot due to its advantages of simplicity and efficiency. In this article, the biomimetic modification of biomaterials for oromaxillofacial hard tissue regeneration is reviewed, expecting to provide a new idea for the treatment of oromaxillofacial hard tissue defect.
Biocompatible Materials ; Biomimetics ; Bone Regeneration ; Dental Implants ; Tissue Engineering ; Tissue Scaffolds

Oral-maxillofacial hard tissue is the support of maxillofacial structure and appearance, and lays the foundation for functions of oral and maxillofacial system. Once the defect occurs, it will not only affect the physiological functions such as chewing and pronunciation, but also have a significant impact on the psychological and social life of patients. However, the self-repairing capability of the oral-maxillofacial hard tissue is pretty limited, in which case, substitute materials are required for tissue repair. A huge gap exists between the physical, chemical, structural characteristics of conventional substitute materials and those of human hard tissues, resulting in poor repair effect. Based on this, scholars simulated the process of biomineralization in the development of hard tissues, to improve the structure and function of materials through biomimetic mineralization technology and enhance the repair performance of materials. The current understanding of biomineralization theory and the construction of biomimetic repair technology is still in the stage of rapid development. In recent years, a mass of innovative studies are keeping emerging. In this review, the representative advances in the repair of oral-maxillofacial hard tissues of the past five years are reviewed.
Biomimetics ; Humans

Polyamide-amine (PAMAM) dendrimer, a new hyperbranched macromolecular polymer, is considered an "artificial protein" by many scholars on account of its excellent chemical and biological characteristics. PAMAM has internal cavities and a large number of reactive terminal groups. These structures allow the polymer to be used as a bionic macromoleculethat could simulate the biomimetic mineralization of the natural organic matrix on the surface of tooth tissue. Specifically, PAMAM can beused as an organic template to regulate mineral nucleation and crystal growth; thus, the polymerisa more ideal dental restoration material than traditional allogenic materials. This article reviews research progress on thePAMAM-induced biomimetic mineralization of hard tooth tissues.
Amines ; Biomimetics ; Dendrimers ; Humans ; Nylons ; Tooth Remineralization

Macrophages play an important role in material-related immune responses and bone formation, but the functionality of macrophage-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) in material-mediated bone regeneration is still unclear. Here, we evaluated intracellular communication through small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) and its effects on endogenous bone regeneration mediated by biomimetic intrafibrillarly mineralized collagen (IMC). After implantation in the bone defect area, IMC generated more neobone and recruited more mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) than did extrafibrillarly mineralized collagen (EMC). More CD63
Biomimetics ; Bone Regeneration ; Cell Differentiation ; Collagen ; Extracellular Vesicles ; Macrophages ; Osteogenesis