Intelligent berberine-loaded erythrocytes attenuated inflammatory cytokine productions in macrophages

Erythrocytes are impressive tools for drug delivery, especially to macrophages. Therefore, berberine was loaded into erythrocytes using both hypotonic pre-swelling and endocytosis methods to target macrophages. Physicochemical and kinetic parameters of the resulting carrier cells, such as drug loading/release kinetics, osmotic fragility, and hematological indices, were determined. Drug loading was optimized for the study using Taguchi experimental design and lab experiments. Loaded erythrocytes were targeted to macrophages using ZnCl2 and bis-sulfosuccinimidyl-suberate, and targeting was evaluated using flow cytometry and Wright-Giemsa staining. Differentiated macrophages were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide, and the inflammatory profiles of macrophages were evaluated using ELISA, western blotting, and real-time PCR. Findings indicated that the endocytosis method is preferred due to its low impact on the erythrocyte's structural integrity. Maximum loading achieved (1386.68 ± 22.43 μg/ml) at 1500 μg/ml berberine treatment at 37 °C for 2 h. Berberine successfully inhibited NF-κB translation in macrophages, and inflammatory response markers such as IL-1β, IL-8, IL-23, and TNF-α were decreased by approximately ninefold, sixfold, twofold, eightfold, and twofold, respectively, compared to the LPS-treated macrophages. It was concluded that berberine-loaded erythrocytes can effectively target macrophages and modulate the inflammatory response.

Preparation of brushite cements with improved properties by adding graphene oxide

Background: Brushite (dicalcium phosphate dihydrate, DCPD) cement as a promising bioactive material for bone tissue engineering is widely used to treat defects. However, relatively poor mechanical properties of brushite cement limit its application in loadbearing conditions. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of graphene oxide (GO) addition to the physical-mechanical-biological properties of brushite cement. Methods: The brushite types of cement were prepared by mixing β-tricalcium phosphate [β-TCP, Ca3 (PO4)2] and monocalcium phosphate monohydrate [MCPM, Ca(H2PO4)2. H2O]. GO was introduced at 0, 0.5, 2, and 5 wt.% with the liquid. MG63 cells were cultured on the GO/CPC surfaces to observe various cellular activities and hydroxyapatite (HA) mineralization. Results: Based on our results, GO/CPC composites exhibit improvement in compressive strength compared to pure CPC. New Ca-deficient apatite layer was deposited on the composite surface after immersing immersion in SBF for 7 and 14 days. Field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) images indicated that pure and GO incorporated brushite cement facilitates cell adhesion. CPC/GO was slightly toxic to cells such that high concentrations of GO decreased the cell viability. Besides, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity of cells was improved compared with the pure CPC. Conclusion: Our results highlight the role of graphene oxide that may have great potential in enabling the utility of graphene-based materials in various biomedical applications.

Skin tissue engineering: wound healing based on stem-cell-based therapeutic strategies

Normal wound healing is a dynamic and complex multiple phase process involving coordinated interactions between growth factors, cytokines, chemokines, and various cells. Any failure in these phases may lead wounds to become chronic and have abnormal scar formation. Chronic wounds affect patients' quality of life, since they require repetitive treatments and incur considerable medical costs. Thus, much effort has been focused on developing novel therapeutic approaches for wound treatment. Stem-cell-based therapeutic strategies have been proposed to treat these wounds. They have shown considerable potential for improving the rate and quality of wound healing and regenerating the skin. However, there are many challenges for using stem cells in skin regeneration. In this review, we present some sets of the data published on using embryonic stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cells, and adult stem cells in healing wounds. Additionally, we will discuss the different angles whereby these cells can contribute to their unique features and show the current drawbacks.