Heparin bioconjugate with a thermoresponsive cationic branched polymer: a novel aqueous antithrombogenic coating material

Recent advances in the design and immobilization of heparin for biomedical application: A review

Heparin, a member of the glycosaminoglycan family, is renowned as the most negatively charged biomolecule discovered within the realm of human biology. This polysaccharide serves a vital role as a regulator for various proteins, cells, and tissues within the human body, positioning itself as a pivotal macromolecule of significance. The domain of biology has witnessed substantial interest in the intricate design of heparin and its derivatives, particularly focusing on heparin-based polymers and hydrogels. This intrigue spans a wide spectrum of applications, encompassing diverse areas such as protein adsorption, anticoagulant properties, controlled drug release, development of implants, stent innovation, enhancement of blood compatibility, acceleration of wound healing, and pioneering strides in tissue engineering. This comprehensive overview delves into a multitude of developed heparin conjugates, employing various methods, and explores their functions in both the biomedicine and electronics fields. The efficacy of materials derived from heparin is also thoroughly investigated, encompassing considerations such as thrombogenicity, drug release kinetics, affinity for growth factors (GFs), biocompatibility, and electrochemical analyses. We firmly believe that by redirecting focus towards research and advancements in heparin-related polymers/hydrogels, this study will ignite further research and accelerate potential breakthroughs in this promising and evolving field of discovery.

Advances in thermosensitive polymer-grafted platforms for biomedical applications

Studies on "smart" polymeric material performing environmental stimuli such as temperature, pH, magnetic field, enzyme and photo-sensation have recently paid much attention to practical applications. Among of them, thermo-responsive grafted copolymers, amphiphilic steroids as well as polyester molecules have been utilized in the fabrication of several multifunctional platforms. Indeed, they performed a strikingly functional improvement comparing to some original materials and exhibited a holistic approach for biomedical applications. In case of drug delivery systems (DDS), there has been some successful proof of thermal-responsive grafted platforms on clinical trials such as ThermoDox®, BIND-014, Cynviloq IG-001, Genexol-PM, etc. This review would detail the recent progress and highlights of some temperature-responsive polymer-grafted nanomaterials or hydrogels in the 'smart' DDS that covered from synthetic polymers to nature-driven biomaterials and novel generations of some amphiphilic functional platforms. These approaches could produce several types of smart biomaterials for human health care in future.

MRI-sensitive contrast agent with anticoagulant activity for surface camouflage of transplanted pancreatic islets

Pancreatic islet implantation in the liver is a promising approach for diabetes therapy. However, 70% of the islet mass fails to be engrafted in the liver due to the instant blood-mediated inflammatory reactions (IBMIR) resulting from direct contact between islet cells and the bloodstream. To overcome this issue, direct monitoring is very important for establishing prognosis after islet cell therapy. Here we established a new type of MR contrast agent with anticoagulant activity via heparin-immobilized superparamagnetic iron oxide (HSPIO). The HSPIO was chemically conjugated onto islet surface ex vivo without damage of their viability and functionality. The conjugated HSPIO nanoparticles onto islet surface could attenuate IBMIR in vitro and in vivo. The HSPIO-conjugated islets could cure the blood glucose levels of diabetes animals after implantation. In addition, the HSPIO nanoparticles were well maintained on the transplanted islets for a long time during modulation of inflammation. Also, they allowed for stable visualization of the implanted islet cells for more than 150 days without reduction of the MRI signal. Furthermore, when HSPIO itself was intraportally injected, it was rapidly eliminated without accumulation in the liver, suggesting that HSPIO nanoparticles could only track the immobilized islet. Collectively, this HSPIO nanoparticle having MRI sensitivity and anticoagulant activity could be utilized for successful islet implantation.

Antimicrobial Activity from Colistin-Heparin Lamellar-Phase Complexes for the Coating of Biomedical Devices

Infections arising in hospitalized patients, particularly those who have undergone surgery and are reliant on receiving treatment through biomedical devices, continue to be a rising concern. It is well-known that aqueous mixtures of oppositely charged surfactant and polymer molecules can self-assemble to form liquid crystalline structures, primarily via electrostatically driven interactions that have demonstrated great potential as tailored-release nanomaterials. Colistin is a re-emerging antibiotic used against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. Its amphiphilic structure allows it to form micellar aggregates in solution. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine whether structured complexes form between colistin and negatively charged biopolymers, such as the highly sulfated anticoagulant, heparin. Cross-polarized light microscopy and synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering were employed to visualize the appearance of birefringent structures and identify liquid crystalline structures, respectively, formed across the interface between solutions of colistin and heparin. A lamellar phase with a lattice parameter of ∼40 Å was formed upon contact between the oppositely charged solutions of colistin and heparin. In addition, in vitro release studies showed a slow release of colistin from the lamellar-phase gel complexes into the bulk media, and disk diffusion bioassays revealed antimicrobial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This system provides a novel, cost-effective, and simple approach to reducing the risk of infections by potentially applying the formulation as a coating for biomedical implants or tubing.

A Material Conferring Hemocompatibility

There is a need for biomimetic materials for use in blood-contacting devices. Blood contacting surfaces maintain their patency through physico-chemical properties of a functional endothelium. A poly(carbonate-urea) urethane (PCU) is used as a base material to examine the feasibility of L-Arginine methyl ester (L-AME) functionalized material for use in implants and coatings. The study hypothesizes that L-AME, incorporated into PCU, functions as a bioactive porogen, releasing upon contact with blood to interact with endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) present in blood. Endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) were successfully cultured on L-AME functionalized material, indicating that L-AME -increases cell viability. L-AME functionalized material potentially has broad applications in blood-contacting medical devices, as well as various other applications requiring endogenous up-regulation of nitric oxide, such as wound healing. This study presents an in-vitro investigation to demonstrate the novel anti-thrombogenic properties of L-AME, when in solution and when present within a polyurethane-based polymer.

Hyperbranched polymeric "star vectors" for effective DNA or siRNA delivery

Although gene therapy offers an attractive strategy for treating inherited disorders, current techniques using viral and nonviral delivery systems have not yielded many successful results in clinical trials. Viral vectors such as retroviruses, lentiviruses, and adenoviruses deliver genes efficiently; however, the possibility of negative outcomes from viral transformation cannot be completely ruled out. In contrast, various types of nonviral vectors are attracting considerable attention because they are easier to handle and induce weak immune responses. Cationic polymers, such as polyethylenimine (PEI) and poly(N,N-dimethylaminopropyl acrylamide) (PDMAPAAm), can generate nanoparticles through the formation of polyion complexes, "polyplexes" with DNA. These nonviral systems offer many advantages over viral systems. The primary obstacle to implementing these cationic polymers in an effective gene therapy remains their comparatively inefficient gene transfection in vivo. We describe four strategies for the development of hyperbranched star vectors (SVs) for enhancing DNA or siRNA delivery. The molecular design was performed by living radical polymerization in which the chain length can be controlled by photoirradiation and solution conditions, including concentrations of the monomer or iniferter (a molecule that serves as a combination of initiator, transfer agent, and terminator). The branch composition is controlled by the types of monomers that are added stepwise. In our first strategy, we prepared a series of only cationic PDMAPAAm-based SVs with no branches or 3, 4, or 6 branching numbers. These SVs could form polyion complexes (polyplexes) by mixing with DNA only in aqueous solution. The relative gene expression activity of the delivered DNA increased according to the degree of branching. In addition, increasing the molecular weight of SVs and narrowing their polydispersity index (PDI) improved their activity. For targeting DNA delivery to the specific cells, we modified the SV with ligands. Interestingly, the SV could adsorb the RGD peptide, making gene transfer possible in endothelial cells which are usually refractory to such treatments. The peptide was added to the polyplex solution without covalent derivatization to the SV. The introduction of additional branching by cross-linking using iniferter-induced coupling reactions further improved gene transfection activity. After block copolymerization of PDMAPAAm-based SVs with a nonionic monomer (DMAAm), the blocked SVs (BSVs) produced polyplexes with DNA that had excellent colloidal stability for 1 month, leading to efficient in vitro and in vivo gene delivery. Moreover, BSVs served as carriers for siRNA delivery. BSVs enhanced siRNA-mediated gene silencing in mouse liver and lung. As an alternative approach, we developed a novel gene transfection method in which the polyplexes were kept in contact with their deposition surface by thermoresponsive blocking of the SV. This strategy was more effective than reverse transfection and the conventional transfection methods in solution.

Improvement of hemocompatibility of polycaprolactone film surfaces with zwitterionic polymer brushes

Polycaprolactone (PCL) has been widely adopted as a scaffold biomaterial, but further improvement of the hemocompatibility of a PCL film surface is still needed for wide biomedical applications. In this work, the PCL film surface was functionalized with zwitterionic poly(3-dimethyl(methacryloyloxyethyl) ammonium propane sulfonate) (P(DMAPS)) brushes via surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) for enhancing hemocompatibility. Kinetics study revealed an approximately linear increase in graft yield of the functional P(DMAPS) brushes with polymerization time. The blood compatibilities of the modified PCL film surfaces were studied by platelet adhesion tests of platelet-rich plasma and human whole blood, hemolysis assay, and plasma recalcification time (PRT) assay. The improvement of hemocompatibility is dependent on the coverage of the grafted P(DMAPS) brushes on the PCL film. Lower or no platelet and blood cell adhesion was observed on the P(DMAPS)-grafted film surfaces. The P(DMAPS) grafting can further decrease hemolysis and enhance the PRT of the PCL surface. With the versatility of surface-initiated ATRP and the excellent hemocompatibility of zwitterionic polymer brushes, PCL films with desirable blood properties can be readily tailored to cater to various biomedical applications.

Thermoresponsive surfaces prepared using adsorption of a cationic graft copolymer: a versatile method for triggered particle capture

In this study we investigate triggered particle capture at substrates containing adsorbed thermally responsive graft copolymers. The copolymers used were PDMA(x)(+)-g-(PNIPAm(n))(y), where DMA(+) is quaternized N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate and NIPAm is N-isopropylacrylamide. The x and y values originate from the macroinitiator used for copolymer preparation. In this study the copolymers are adsorbed onto two different substrates: quartz microscope slides and microporous, high surface area carbon foam. The substrates were coated with a layer of calcined laponite. The laponite acted as a conditioning layer and promoted strong adsorption of the copolymer. The hydrophobicity of the thermoresponsive surfaces was probed using variable-temperature contact angle measurements. The contact angles generally increased considerably upon increasing the temperature to above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of the copolymers. The ability of the thermoresponsive surfaces to capture dispersed particles was investigated using anionic and cationic polystyrene (PS) particles. PDMA(30)(+)-g-(PNIPAm(210))(14) was the most effective copolymer in terms of providing high capture efficiencies of anionic PS particles using temperature as the trigger. The thermoresponsive surfaces strongly held the anionic PS particles even when cooled to below the LCST. The relationships between copolymer structure and particle capture efficiency are discussed. The new approach used here for preparation thermoresponsive surfaces is potentially scalable to high volume applications.

Deposition transfection technology using a DNA complex with a thermoresponsive cationic star polymer

A novel non-viral gene transfection method in which DNA complexes were kept in contact with a deposition surface (deposition transfection) was developed. We designed a novel aqueous thermoresponsive adsorbent material for DNA deposition, which was a star-shaped copolymer with 4-branched chains. Each chain is comprised of a cationic poly(N,N-dimethylaminopropyl acrylamide) (PDMAPAAm) block (Mn: ca. 3000 g x mol(-1)), which formed an inner domain for DNA binding and a thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) block (Mn: ca. 6000 g x mol(-1)), which formed an outer domain for surface adsorption. Complex formation between the copolymer and the luciferase-encoding plasmid DNA occurred immediately upon simple mixing in an aqueous medium; polyplexes approximately 100 nm in size were formed. Because the lower critical solution temperature of the polyplexes was approximately 35 degrees C, they could deposit on the substrate by precipitation from an aqueous solution upon warming, which was confirmed by quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) method and water contact angle measurement. When COS-1 cells were cultured on the polyplex-deposited substrate in a culture medium, the luciferase activity observed was higher than that observed on a DNA-coated substrate with or without the cationic polymer before and after complete adhesion and by conventional solution transfection using the polyplexes. The activity was enhanced with an increase in the charge ratio (surfactant/pDNA) with permissible cellular cytotoxicity.