Production of a novel poly(ɛ-caprolactone)-methylcellulose electrospun wound dressing by incorporating bioactive glass and Manuka honey.

Wound dressings produced by electrospinning exhibit a fibrous structure close to the one of the extracellular matrix of the skin. In this article, electrospinning was used to fabricate fiber mats based on the well-known biopolymers poly(ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL) and methylcellulose (MC) using benign solvents. The blend fiber mats were cross-linked using Manuka honey and additionally used as a biodegradable platform to deliver bioactive glass particles.

Manuka honey and bioactive glass impart methylcellulose foams with antibacterial effects for wound-healing applications.

Wound dressings able to deliver topically bioactive molecules represent a new generation of wound-regeneration therapies. In this article, foams based on methylcellulose cross-linked with Manuka honey were used as a platform to deliver borate bioactive glass particles doped additionally with copper. Borate bioactive glasses are of great interest in wound-healing applications due to a combination of favorable features, such as angiogenic and antibacterial properties.

Multifunctional zinc ion doped sol - gel derived mesoporous bioactive glass nanoparticles for biomedical applications.

Mesoporous bioactive glasses have been widely investigated for applications in bone tissue regeneration and, more recently, in soft tissue repair and wound healing. In this study we produced mesoporous bioactive glass nanoparticles (MBGNs) based on the SiO-CaO system. With the intention of adding subsidiary biological function, MBGNs were doped with Zn ions.

Hypolipidemic effect of mannans from C. albicans serotypes a and B in acute hyperlipidemia in mice.

Mannans, which are biological macromolecules of polysaccharide origin and function as immunomodulators, have been shown to stimulate macrophages in vivo by interaction with the mannose receptor. Thus, they can be used to stimulate macrophages in order to effectively remove circulating atherogenic lipoproteins. Our primary aim was to evaluate the hypolipidemic potential of mannans from C.

A comparative study of the hypolipidaemic effects of a new polysaccharide, mannan Candida albicans serotype A, and atorvastatin in mice with poloxamer 407-induced hyperlipidaemia.

Objectives: We evaluated the hypolipidaemic effect of mannan Candida albicans serotype A, relative to atorvastatin, in a mouse model of hyperlipidaemia.

Methods: Mannan serotype A was investigated in vitro and in vivo to determine its effects on macrophage proliferation, nitric oxide (NO) production by cultured macrophages, serum and liver lipids, changes in liver morphology and serum chitotriosidase activity and its expression in the liver.

Key Findings: Mannan serotype A stimulates the macrophage proliferation and NO production in murine peritoneal macrophages in vitro.

Preparation and characterization of cationic and amphoteric mannans from Candida albicans.

Cationic and amphoteric mannans from Candida albicans were prepared by chemical modification with (3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyl)trimethylammonium chloride (CHPTAC) and sodium chloroacetate under aqueous alkaline conditions. The optimal reaction conditions for mannan cationization were found to be 6h, 60°C, and NaOH/CHPTAC ratio of 1.0.

Vaccination with mannan protects mice against systemic aspergillosis.

Invasive aspergillosis is a major cause of mortality in immunocompromised patients and therapeutic options are often limited, thus a vaccine would be desirable. We presently studied acid-stable cell-wall mannan (α-1, 6-linked backbone highly branched with α-1, 2; α-1, 3; and β-1, 2-linked manno-oligomers) derived from C. albicans, with or without conjugation to bovine serum albumin (BSA), as a vaccine against systemic aspergillosis.

B cells - ontogenesis and immune memory development.

Functional diversity in the distinct developmental stages as well as anti-pathogen effectiveness and memory functionality make B cells unique and attractive object of physiology studies of the immune system. B cells are produced throughout the life of an organism, originate from the hematopoietic stem cells before birth and continue to differentiate to terminal stages. Over the past decade, there has been considerable progress in the research of all B cell intermediates and developmental processes.