Mechanically regulated microcarriers with stem cell loading for skin photoaging therapy.

Long-term exposure to ultraviolet radiation compromises skin structural integrity and results in disruption of normal physiological functions. Stem cells have gained attention in anti-photoaging, while controlling the tissue mechanical microenvironment of cell delivery sites is crucial for regulating cell fate and achieving optimal therapeutic performances. Here, we introduce a mechanically regulated human recombinant collagen (RHC) microcarrier generated through microfluidics, which is capable of modulating stem cell differentiation to treat photoaged skin.

Extracellular Matrix-Inspired Dendrimer Nanogels Encapsulating Cyclophosphamide for Systemic Sclerosis Treatment.

Cyclophosphamide has a certain therapeutic effect on treating systemic sclerosis (SSc), while difficulties exist in controlling severe systematic side effects and enhancing targeting capacity. Here, inspired from the natural extracellular matrix composition, we propose a cyclophosphamide-encapsulated nanogel based on dendritic polymers polyamidoamine (PAMAM) for SSc treatment. We combine bovine serum albumin and generation 5 (G5) PAMAM dendrimers with polyphenol modification to obtain nanogels featured with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

Polydopamine Nanohydrogel Decorated Adhesive and Responsive Hierarchical Microcarriers for Deafness Protection.

Cisplatin-induced ototoxicity is attributed to the aberrant accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) within the inner ear. Antioxidants represented by α-lipoic acid (ALA) have been demonstrated to scavenge ROS in the cochlea, while effective delivery of these agents in vivo remains a major challenge. Here, a novel polydopamine (PDA) nanogel decorated adhesive and responsive hierarchical microcarriers for controllable is presented ALA delivery and deafness prevention.

Developing 3D bioprinting for organs-on-chips.

Organs-on-chips (OoCs) have significantly advanced biomedical research by precisely reconstructing human microphysiological systems with biomimetic functions. However, achieving greater structural complexity of cell cultures on-chip for enhanced biological mimicry remains a challenge. To overcome these challenges, 3D bioprinting techniques can be used in directly building complex 3D cultures on chips, facilitating the engineering of organ-level models.

Structural Color Contact Lenses from Cholesteric Cellulose Liquid Crystals.

Colored contact lenses have gained popularity among young individuals owing to their ability to alter the appearance of the wearer's eyes. However, conventional lenses containing chemical dyes are susceptible to detachment of the pigment layer, which can lead to corneal damage. In this research, a novel cellulose-based structural color contact lens (SCCL) is presented that enhances aesthetic appeal via a cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) layer.

Emerging Functional Porous Scaffolds for Liver Tissue Engineering.

Liver tissue engineering holds promising in synthesizing or regenerating livers, while the design of functional scaffold remains a challenge. Owing to the intricate simulation of extracellular matrix structure and performance, porous scaffolds have demonstrated advantages in creating liver microstructures and sustaining liver functions. Currently, various methods and processes have been employed to fabricate porous scaffolds, manipulating the properties and morphologies of materials to confer them with unique supportive functions.

Biomimetic Vascularized iPSC-Hepatocyte Spheroids for Liver Regeneration.

Human induced pluripotent stem cell derived hepatocytes (hiPSC-heps) hold promising value for acute liver failure (ALF) treatment, while their therapeutic efficacy is usually limited by low cell bioactivity and untargeted in vivo accumulation. Here, inspired by vascularity supporting cellular architectures in the tissues and organs, a novel vascularized hiPSC-heps spheroid based on microfluidic microcapsules is presented for liver repair via orthotopic transplantation. The microcapsules are comprised of aqueous cores that facilitate hiPSC-hep aggregating into spheroids, and hybrid hydrogel shells of sodium alginate and hyaluronic acid methacryloyl (HAMA).

Frog tongue-inspired wettable microfibers for particles capture.

Fibers have been of great significance in our daily lives, especially in the industrial production of masks. Research in this area has been focused on developing microfibers with superior functions to enhance the filtration performances of the masks. Herein, inspired by the frog's predation mechanism using its tongues to swiftly grab flying insects, we propose novel porous wettable microfibers from microfluidics to efficiently capture particles in the air for filtration.

Ultrafast Self-Gelling, Adhesive, Anti-Bacterial Coacervate-Based Powders for Enhanced Hemostasis and Wound Healing.

Uncontrolled hemorrhage, especially in non-compressible and deep wounds, remains a critical issue in emergency and surgical care. Existing hemostatic powders often lack rapid gelation, mechanical robustness, and adequate adherence, increasing the risk of rebleeding under high-pressure blood flow. To address these limitations, PQPP, a novel self-gelling hemostatic material composed of polyacrylamide/quaternized chitosan coacervates and polydopamine nanoparticles is developed.

Emerging biotechnologies for engineering liver organoids.

The engineering construction of the liver has attracted enormous attention. Organoids, as emerging miniature three-dimensional cultivation units, hold significant potential in the biomimetic simulation of liver structure and function. Despite notable successes, organoids still face limitations such as high variability and low maturity.

Multifunctional Microneedle Patches for Perivascular Gene Delivery and Treatment of Vascular Intimal Hyperplasia.

Gene therapy has emerged as a promising approach to address challenging cardiovascular diseases. Extensive efforts have been focused on developing highly efficient gene vectors with precise delivery techniques to enhance its effectiveness. In this study, we present multifunctional dopamine-gelatin microneedle patches with gene therapy capabilities to achieve perivascular gene delivery for intimal hyperplasia treatment.

Living photosynthetic microneedle patches for in situ oxygenation and postsurgical melanoma therapy.

Surgical excision remains the principal treatment for melanoma, while tumor recurrence and delayed wound healing often occur due to the residual tumor cells and hypoxic microenvironment in the postoperative skin wounds. Herein, we present a living photosynthetic microneedle (MN) patch (namely MA/CM@MN) loaded with microalgae (MA) and cuttlefish melanin (CM) for postsurgical melanoma therapy and skin wound healing. Benefiting from the oxygenic photosynthesis of the alive MA in the MN base, the MA/CM@MN can generate oxygen under light exposure, thus facilitating skin cell proliferation and protecting cells against hypoxia-induced cell death.

Electrical Microneedles for Wound Treatment.

Electrical stimulation has been hotpot research and provoked extensive interest in a broad application such as wound closure, tissue injury repair, and nerve engineering. In particular, immense efforts have been dedicated to developing electrical microneedles, which demonstrate unique features in terms of controllable drug release, real-time monitoring, and therapy, thus greatly accelerating the process of wound healing. Here, a review of state-of-art research concerning electrical microneedles applied for wound treatment is presented.

Black Phosphorus Tagged Responsive Strontium Hydrogel Particles for Bone Defect Repair.

Hydrogel-derived implants have proven value in bone tissue regeneration, and current efforts have concentrated on devising strategies for producing functional implants with desired structures and functions to improve therapeutic outcomes. Herein, a novel black phosphorus (BP) tagged responsive strontium (Sr) hydrogel particles are presented for bone defect repair. By applying microfluidic technology, Sr and carboxymethyl chitosan, and BP are integrated into poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) (pNIPAM) hydrogel matrix to generate such microparticles called pNBCSMs.

Melanin Hydrogel Inverse Opal Microneedle Patches for Wound Healing.

Bacterial infected wounds bring an economic burden to the worldwide medical care field. A variety of bioactives-integrated hydrogel patches are developed in response to this challenge. Here, the melanin hydrogel inverse opal microneedle patches (MNs) with antioxidant and visual color sensing abilities for the management of bacterial infected wounds are proposed.

Multifunctional Analgesic Sutures from Microfluidic Spinning Technology.

Sutures are the most commonly used wound repair method after surgery. However, addressing delayed recovery and pain management remains a significant challenge. Here, microfibers are developed from microfluidic spinning with long-lasting analgesia capabilities for sutures.

Photothermal responsive porous hollow microneedles as Chinese medicine versatile delivery system for wound healing.

Chinese medicine is identified as a candidate for wound healing. Attempts in this field tend to develop efficient dosage forms for delivering Chinese medicine with low side effects. In this paper, we proposed novel photothermal responsive porous hollow microneedles (PRPH-MNs) as a versatile Chinese medicine delivery system for efficient antibacterial wound treatment.

Glycyrrhizic Acid Hydrogel Microparticles Encapsulated with Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes for Wound Healing.

Hydrogel microparticles have been proved to be curative to diabetic wounds. Current trends focus on the integration of bioactive matrix and their smart stimulus-responsive release to meet the complex demand of regeneration in diabetic wound. In this paper, we present novel stem cell exosome-encapsulated Chinese herb glycyrrhizic acid (GA) hydrogel microparticles for wound healing.

Responsive porous microneedles with riboflavin ocular microinjection capability for facilitating corneal crosslinking.

Riboflavin-5-phosphate (riboflavin) is the most commonly used photosensitizer in corneal crosslinking (CXL); while its efficient delivery into the stroma through the corneal epithelial barrier is challenging. In this paper, we presented novel responsive porous microneedles with ocular microinjection capability to deliver riboflavin controllably inside the cornea to facilitate CXL. The microneedle patch was composed of Poly (N-isopropyl acrylamide) (PNIPAM), graphene oxide (GO), and riboflavin-loaded gelatin.

Bioinspired Wet Adhesive Proanthocyanidins Microneedles for Ocular Wound Healing.

Microneedles have shown considerable potential in treating ocular diseases, yet enhancing their architecture and functionality to improve therapeutic efficacy poses marked challenges. Here, inspired by the antioxidant strategy of blueberries and the wet adhesive mechanism of clingfish, we construct hierarchical and multifunctional microneedles. These microneedles possess both wet adhesive and antioxidant properties, making them highly effective for ocular wound healing.

Emerging biomedical technologies for scarless wound healing.

Complete wound healing without scar formation has attracted increasing attention, prompting the development of various strategies to address this challenge. In clinical settings, there is a growing preference for emerging biomedical technologies that effectively manage fibrosis following skin injury, as they provide high efficacy, cost-effectiveness, and minimal side effects compared to invasive and costly surgical techniques. This review gives an overview of the latest developments in advanced biomedical technologies for scarless wound management.

Biomimetic Liver Lobules from Multi-Compartmental Microfluidics.

Engineered liver lobule is highly practical in hepatic disease treatment, while constructing a 3D biomimetic lobule with a heterogeneous architecture on a large scale is challenging. Here, inspired by the natural architectural construction of hepatic lobules, biomimetic hepatic lobules are proposed with coaxially through-pores for nutrient exchange via microfluidic technology. This multi-channel microfluidic chip is made by parallelly installing capillaries.

Bioinspired Surfaces Derived from Acoustic Waves for On-Demand Droplet Manipulations.

The controllable manipulation and transfer of droplets are fundamental in a wide range of chemical reactions and even life processes. Herein, we present a novel, universal, and straightforward acoustic approach to fabricating biomimetic surfaces for on-demand droplet manipulations like many natural creatures. Based on the capillary waves induced by surface acoustic waves, various polymer films could be deformed into pre-designed structures, such as parallel grooves and grid-like patterns.