Publications by authors named "J Mariano Ruiz de Almodovar"

Article Synopsis
  • Collagen plays a crucial role in the extracellular matrix (ECM) and its orientation is essential for replicating cellular environments, but creating large-scale aligned collagen structures is challenging.
  • Type I collagen can self-assemble into liquid crystalline mesophases at acid conditions and high concentrations, which aids in aligning collagen on substrates, but processing these high concentrations presents difficulties.
  • This study successfully achieves centimeter-scale alignment of collagen on glass substrates at lower concentrations, and extends this alignment to 3-D hydrogels, showing that the alignment influences the orientation of human Schwann cells, with a model estimating the magnetic field needed for future studies on collagen alignment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study evaluates the use of poly(vinyl alcohol), collagen, and chitosan blends for developing a microneedle patch for the delivery of meloxicam (MEL). Results confirm successful MEL encapsulation, structural integrity, and chemical stability even after ethylene oxide sterilization. Mechanical testing indicates the patch has the required properties for effective skin penetration and drug delivery, as demonstrated by load-displacement curves showing successful penetration of pig ear surfaces at 3N of normal load.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Nurse leaders in many settings are responsible for clinic operations. Knowing the medical and financial stakes of each patient encounter, it is not surprising to encounter patients requesting reconsideration of bills after services are provided. This article provides recommendations on how to successfully navigate billing reconsideration requests in outpatient settings.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In this study, layer-by-layer coatings composed of heparin and collagen are proposed as an extracellular mimetic environment on nerve guide conduits (NGC) to modulate the behavior of Schwann cells (hSCs). The authors evaluated the stability, degradation over time, and bioactivity of six bilayers of heparin/collagen layer-by-layer coatings, denoted as (HEP/COL). The stability study reveals that (HEP/COL) is stable after incubating the coatings in cell media for up to 21 days.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The immunomodulatory potential of human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs) can be boosted when exposed to interferon-gamma (IFN-γ). While pretreating hMSCs with IFN-γ is a common practice to enhance their immunomodulatory effects, the challenge lies in maintaining a continuous IFN-γ presence within cellular environments. Therefore, in this research, we investigate the sustainable presence of IFN-γ in the cell culture medium by immobilizing it in water-stable metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) [PCN-333(Fe)].

View Article and Find Full Text PDF