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Kaewchuchuen J, Matthew SAL, Phuagkhaopong S, Bimbo LM, Seib FP. Functionalising silk hydrogels with hetero- and homotypic nanoparticles. RSC Adv 2024; 14:3525-3535. [PMID: 38259992 PMCID: PMC10801455 DOI: 10.1039/d3ra07634b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/02/2024] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Despite many reports detailing silk hydrogels, the development of composite silk hydrogels with homotypic and heterotypic silk nanoparticles and their impact on material mechanics and biology have remained largely unexplored. We hypothesise that the inclusion of nanoparticles into silk-based hydrogels enables the formation of homotropic and heterotropic material assemblies. The aim was to explore how well these systems allow tuning of mechanics and cell adhesion to ultimately control the cell-material interface. We utilised nonporous silica nanoparticles as a standard reference and compared them to nanoparticles derived from Bombyx mori silk and Antheraea mylitta (tasar) silk (approximately 100-150 nm in size). Initially, physically cross-linked B. mori silk hydrogels were prepared containing silica, B. mori silk nanoparticles, or tasar silk nanoparticles at concentrations of either 0.05% or 0.5% (w/v). The initial modulus (stiffness) of these nanoparticle-functionalised silk hydrogels was similar. Stress relaxation was substantially faster for nanoparticle-modified silk hydrogels than for unmodified control hydrogels. Increasing the concentrations of B. mori silk and silica nanoparticles slowed stress relaxation, while the opposite trend was observed for hydrogels modified with tasar nanoparticles. Cell attachment was similar for all hydrogels, but proliferation during the initial 24 h was significantly improved with the nanoparticle-modified hydrogels. Overall, this study demonstrates the manufacture and utilisation of homotropic and heterotropic silk hydrogels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jirada Kaewchuchuen
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde 161 Cathedral Street Glasgow G4 0RE UK
| | - Saphia A L Matthew
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde 161 Cathedral Street Glasgow G4 0RE UK
| | - Suttinee Phuagkhaopong
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde 161 Cathedral Street Glasgow G4 0RE UK
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University Bangkok Thailand
| | - Luis M Bimbo
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde 161 Cathedral Street Glasgow G4 0RE UK
- Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Coimbra 3000-548 Coimbra Portugal
- CNC - Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Rua Larga, University of Coimbra 3004-504 Coimbra Portugal
- CIBB - Center for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Rua Larga, University of Coimbra 3004-504 Coimbra Portugal
| | - F Philipp Seib
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde 161 Cathedral Street Glasgow G4 0RE UK
- Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology & Applied Ecology Branch Bioresources, Ohlebergsweg 12 35392 Giessen Germany
- Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of Pharmacy Lessingstr. 8 07743 Jena Germany +49 3641 9 499 00
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Abstract
Medical silks have captured global interest. While silk sutures have a long track record in humans, silk bioconjugates are still in preclinical development. This perspective examines key advances in silk bioconjugation, including the fabrication of silk-protein conjugates, bioconjugated silk particles, and bioconjugated substrates to enhance cell-material interactions in two and three dimensions. Many of these systems rely on chemical modification of the silk biopolymer, often using carbodiimide and reactive ester chemistries. However, recent progress in enzyme-mediated and click chemistries has expanded the molecular toolbox to enable biorthogonal, site-specific conjugation in a single step when combined with recombinant silk fibroin tagged with noncanonical amino acids. This perspective outlines key strategies available for chemical modification, compares the resulting silk conjugates to clinical benchmarks, and outlines open questions and areas that require more work. Overall, this assessment highlights a domain of new sunrise capabilities and development opportunities for silk bioconjugates that may ultimately offer new ways of delivering improved healthcare.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saphia
A. L. Matthew
- Strathclyde
Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, 161 Cathedral Street, Glasgow G4 0RE, U.K.
| | - F. Philipp Seib
- Strathclyde
Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, 161 Cathedral Street, Glasgow G4 0RE, U.K.
- Branch
Bioresources, Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular
Biology and Applied Ecology, Ohlebergsweg 12, 35392 Giessen, Germany
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Pacheco MO, Lutz HM, Armada J, Davies N, Gerzenshtein IK, Cakley AS, Spiess BD, Stoppel WL. Silk Fibroin Particles as Carriers in the Development of Hemoglobin-Based Oxygen Carriers. Adv Nanobiomed Res 2023; 3:2300019. [PMID: 38708087 PMCID: PMC11068031 DOI: 10.1002/anbr.202300019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Oxygen therapeutics have a range of applications in transfusion medicine and disease treatment. Synthetic molecules and all-natural or semi-synthetic hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) have seen success as potential circulating oxygen carriers. However, many early HBOC products stalled in development due to side effects from excess hemoglobin in the blood stream and hemoglobin entering the tissue. To overcome these issues, research has focused on increasing the molecular diameter of hemoglobin by polymerizing hemoglobin molecules or encapsulating hemoglobin in liposomal carriers. This work leverages the properties of silk fibroin, a cytocompatible and non-thrombogenic biopolymer, known to entrap protein-based cargo, to engineer a fully protein-based oxygen carrier. Herein, an all-aqueous solvent evaporation technique was used to form silk particles via phase separation from a bulk polyvinyl alcohol phase (PVA). Particles size was tuned, and particles were formed with and without hemoglobin. The encapsulation efficiency and ferrous state of hemoglobin were analyzed, resulting in 60% encapsulation efficiency and a maximum of 20% ferric hemoglobin, yielding 100 µg/mL active hemoglobin in certain sfHBOC formulations. The system did not elicit a strong inflammation response in vitro, demonstrating the potential for this particle system to serve as an injectable HBOC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marisa O Pacheco
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Henry M Lutz
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Jostin Armada
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Nickolas Davies
- Department of Anesthesiology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | | | - Alaura S Cakley
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Bruce D Spiess
- Department of Anesthesiology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Whitney L Stoppel
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
- J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
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Pacheco MO, Lutz HM, Armada J, Davies N, Gerzenshtein IK, Cakley AS, Spiess BD, Stoppel WL. Silk Fibroin Particles as Carriers in the Development of All-Natural Hemoglobin-Based Oxygen Carriers (HBOCs). bioRxiv 2023:2023.03.01.530637. [PMID: 36909572 PMCID: PMC10002772 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.01.530637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/07/2023]
Abstract
Oxygen therapeutics have a range of applications in transfusion medicine and disease treatment. Synthetic molecules and all-natural or semi-synthetic hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) have seen success as potential circulating oxygen carriers. However, many early HBOC products were removed from the market due to side effects from excess hemoglobin in the blood stream and hemoglobin entering the tissue. To overcome these issues, research has focused on increasing the molecular diameter of hemoglobin by polymerizing hemoglobin molecules or encapsulating hemoglobin in liposomal carriers, where immune responses and circulation times remain a challenge. This work looks to leverage the properties of silk fibroin, a cytocompatible and non-thrombogenic biopolymer, known to entrap protein-based cargo, to engineer a silk fibroin-hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier (sfHBOC). Herein, an all-aqueous solvent evaporation technique was used to form silk fibroin particles with and without hemoglobin to tailor the formulation for specific particle sizes. The encapsulation efficiency and ferrous state of hemoglobin were analyzed, resulting in 60% encapsulation efficiency and a maximum of 20% ferric hemoglobin, yielding 100 µg/mL active hemoglobin in certain sfHBOC formulations. The system did not elicit a strong inflammation response in vitro, demonstrating the potential for this particle system to serve as an injectable HBOC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marisa O Pacheco
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Henry M Lutz
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Jostin Armada
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Nickolas Davies
- Department of Anesthesiology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | | | - Alaura S Cakley
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Bruce D Spiess
- Department of Anesthesiology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
| | - Whitney L Stoppel
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
- J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville FL
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Pacheco MO, Eccles LE, Davies NA, Armada J, Cakley AS, Kadambi IP, Stoppel WL. Progress in silk and silk fiber-inspired polymeric nanomaterials for drug delivery. Front Chem Eng 2022; 4:1044431. [PMID: 38487791 PMCID: PMC10939129 DOI: 10.3389/fceng.2022.1044431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
The fields of drug and gene delivery have been revolutionized by the discovery and characterization of polymer-based materials. Polymeric nanomaterials have emerged as a strategy for targeted delivery because of features such as their impressive biocompatibility and improved availability. Use of naturally derived polymers in these nanomaterials is advantageous due to their biodegradability and bioresorption. Natural biopolymer-based particles composed of silk fibroins and other silk fiber-inspired proteins have been the focus of research in drug delivery systems due to their simple synthesis, tunable characteristics, and ability to respond to stimuli. Several silk and silk-inspired polymers contain a high proportion of reactive side groups, allowing for functionalization and addition of targeting moieties. In this review, we discuss the main classes of silk and silk-inspired polymers that are being used in the creation of nanomaterials. We also focus on the fabrication techniques used in generating a tunable design space of silk-based polymeric nanomaterials and detail how that translates into use for drug delivery to several distinct microenvironments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marisa O Pacheco
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
| | - Lauren E Eccles
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
| | | | - Jostin Armada
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
| | - Alaura S Cakley
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
| | - Isiri P Kadambi
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
| | - Whitney L Stoppel
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
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