Injectable hydrogels are a sub-type of hydrogels which can be delivered into the host in a minimally invasive manner. They can act as carriers to encapsulate and deliver cells, drugs or active biomolecules across several disease conditions. Polymers, either synthetic or natural, or even a combination of the two, can be used to create injectable hydrogels. Clinically approved injectable hydrogels are being used as dressings for burn wounds, bone and cartilage reconstruction. Injectable hydrogels have recently gained tremendous attention for their delivery into the liver in pre-clinical models. However, their efficacy in clinical studies remains yet to be established. In this article, we describe principles for the design of these injectable hydrogels, delivery strategies and their potential applications in facilitating liver regeneration and ameliorating injury. We also discuss the several constraints related to translation of these hydrogels into clinical settings for liver diseases and deliberate some potential solutions to combat these challenges.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/asia.202401106 | DOI Listing |
Regen Biomater
November 2024
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China.
The hypoxia microenvironment post-myocardial infarction (MI) critically disturbs cellular metabolism and inflammation response, leading to scarce bioenergy supplying, prolonged inflammatory phase and high risk of cardiac fibrosis during cardiac restoration. Herein, an injectable hydrogel is prepared by Schiff base reaction between fructose-1,6-bisphosphate (FBP)-grafted carboxymethyl chitosan (CF) and oxidized dextran (OD), followed by loading fucoidan-coated baicalin (BA)-encapsulated zein nanoparticles (BFZ NPs), in which immunoregulatory and metabolism improving functions are integrally included. The grafted FBP serves to enhance glycolysis and provide more bioenergy for cardiomyocytes survival under hypoxia microenvironment, and elevating cellular antioxidant capacity pentose phosphate pathway.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRegen Biomater
November 2024
Institute of Burn Research, Southwest Hospital, State Key Lab of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University (Third Military Medical University), Chongqing 400038, China.
Chronic diabetic wounds present significant treatment challenges due to their complex microenvironment, often leading to suboptimal healing outcomes. Hydrogen sulfide (HS), a crucial gaseous signaling molecule, has shown great potential in modulating inflammation, oxidative stress and extracellular matrix remodeling, which are essential for effective wound healing. However, conventional HS delivery systems lack the adaptability required to meet the dynamic demands of different healing stages, thereby limiting their therapeutic efficacy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Mater Chem B
January 2025
Laboratory of Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry (IOMC), Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Humboldtstr. 10, 07743 Jena, Germany.
Hydrogels based on supramolecular assemblies offer attractive features for biomedical applications including injectability or versatile combinations of various building blocks. We here investigate a system combining benzenetrispeptides (BTP), which forms supramolecular fibers, with polymer polyethylene oxide (PEO) forming a dense hydrophilic shell around the fibers. Hydrogels are created through the addition of a bifunctional crosslinker (CL).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFACS Nano
January 2025
UMR-S U1148 INSERM, Laboratory for Vascular Translational Science (LVTS), Université Paris Cité, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, F-75018 Paris, France.
Among cardiovascular diseases, thrombotic diseases such as ischemic heart disease and acute ischemic strokes are the most lethal, responsible by themselves for a quarter of worldwide deaths. While surgical treatments exist, they may not be used in all situations, and systemic thrombolytic drug injection, such as recombinant tissue plasminogen activators (rtPA), often remains necessary, despite serious limitations including short therapeutic window, severe side effects, and failure to address the complex nature of thrombi. This prompted intense research into alternative thrombolytics or delivery methods, including nanomedicine.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFACS Appl Mater Interfaces
January 2025
Advanced Interdisciplinary Institute of Environment and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Wastewater Information Analysis and Early Warning, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai 519087, P.R.China.
Chinese herbal medicine has offered a great treasure for discovering intrinsically bioactive low molecular weight gelators (LMWGs). Herein, the two-component hydrogels comprising glycyrrhizic acid (GA) and puerarin (PUE), the primary bioactive components, respectively, from herbs and are successfully prepared. Combined spectroscopic characterizations reveal that hydrogen bonds are formed between GA and PUE molecules, which further drives the growth of nanofiber assemblies into gel networks.
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