A natural polymer-based hydrogel with shape controllability and high toughness and its application to efficient osteochondral regeneration.

Hydrogels prepared from sustainable natural polymers have broad prospects in the biological field. However, their poor mechanical properties and challenges in achieving shape control have limited their application. Herein, a novel preforming dual-effect post-enhancing method is proposed to address these issues.

Drug-loaded pH-responsive polymeric micelles: Simulations and experiments of micelle formation, drug loading and drug release.

pH-responsive drug nanocarriers are widely applied for cancer treatment. However, the mechanistic details of drug loading and drug release from these micelles are unknown. Here, we reveal the mechanistic details of micelle formation, drug loading and drug release from pH-responsive polymeric micelles using computer simulations and experiments.

Molecular self-assembly of amphiphilic cyclic phosphoryl gemcitabine with different N-fatty acyl tails and enhanced anticancer effects of the self-assembled nanostructures.

Molecular self-assembly of nucleosides is important, and the self-assembled nanostructures may be used for drug delivery and targeting. Gemcitabine (GEM) is an important anticancer nucleoside analog though deactivation and multi-drug resistance frequently happen. Four N-fatty acyl derivatives of cyclic phosphoryl GEM were prepared based on the theory of self-assembled drug delivery systems and the HepDirect prodrug technique wherein the prodrug could be degraded by the cytochrome P450 isozymes in hepatocytes to release active drugs.

Amphiphilic lipid derivatives of 3'-hydroxyurea-deoxythymidine: preparation, properties, molecular self-assembly, simulation and in vitro anticancer activity.

Lipid derivatives of nucleoside analogs and their nanoassemblies have become the research hotspot due to their unique function in cancer therapy. Six lipid derivatives of 3'-hydroxyurea-deoxythymidine were prepared with zidovudine as the raw material. The 5'-substituted lipid chains in the derivatives were from the various fatty acids including octanoic acid, decanoic acid, dodecanoic acid, tetradecanoic acid, hexadecanoic acid and octadecanoic acid corresponding to the derivatives OHT, DHT, DDHT, TDHT, HDHT and ODHT.