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Topic Review
Alveolar Type 2 Epithelial Cell Organoid Culture Methods
Lung diseases rank third in terms of mortality and represent a significant economic burden globally. Scientists have been conducting research to better understand respiratory diseases and find treatments for them. An ideal in vitro model must mimic the in vivo organ structure, physiology, and pathology. Organoids are self-organizing, three-dimensional (3D) structures originating from adult stem cells, embryonic lung bud progenitors, embryonic stem cells (ESCs), and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). These 3D organoid cultures may provide a platform for exploring tissue development, the regulatory mechanisms related to the repair of lung epithelia, pathophysiological and immunomodulatory responses to different respiratory conditions, and screening compounds for new drugs. To create 3D lung organoids in vitro, both co-culture and feeder-free methods have been used. However, there exists substantial heterogeneity in the organoid culture methods, including the sources of type 2 alveolar cells (AT2) cells, media composition, and feeder cell origins. 
  • 1.2K
  • 14 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Aptamer-Mediated Precision Therapy for Hematologic Malignancy
Hematologic malignancies, including leukemia, lymphoma, myeloproliferative disorder and plasma cell neoplasia, are genetically heterogeneous and characterized by an uncontrolled proliferation of their corresponding cell lineages in the bone marrow, peripheral blood, tissues or plasma. Although there are many types of therapeutic drugs available for the treatment of different malignancies, the relapse, drug resistance and severe side effects due to the lack of selectivity seriously limit their clinical application. Aptamers are ssDNA or RNA oligonucleotides that can also precisely deliver therapeutic agents into cancer cells through specifically recognizing the membrane protein on cancer cells, which is similar to the capabilities of monoclonal antibodies. Aptamers exhibit higher binding affinity, lower immunogenicity and higher thermal stability than antibodies.
  • 1.1K
  • 20 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Disease Modeling with Kidney Organoids
Kidney diseases often lack optimal treatments, leading millions of deaths each year. Thus, developing appropriate model systems to study human kidney disease is of utmost importance. Some of the most promising human kidney models are organoids or small organ-resembling tissue collectives, derived from human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs).
  • 1.1K
  • 01 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Physical Micro-Environment of Periodontal Ligament
In native periodontal ligament (PDL) development and homeostasis, mechanical loading plays a crucial role. Thus, any strategy aiming at periodontal tissue engineering should entail understanding and replicating in vitro the specific mechanical forces that guide the formation and remodeling of the PDL.
  • 1.1K
  • 21 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Cells for Urethral Tissue Engineering
Urethral stricture is a common urinary tract disorder in men that can be caused by iatrogenic causes, trauma, inflammation, or infection and often requires reconstructive surgery. The current therapeutic approach for complex urethral strictures usually involves reconstruction with autologous tissue from the oral mucosa. With the goal of overcoming the lack of sufficient autologous tissue and donor site morbidity, research has focused on cell-based tissue-engineered substitutes. While the main focus has been on autologous cells from the penile tissue, bladder, and oral cavity, stem cells from sources such as adipose tissue and urine are competing candidates for future urethral regeneration due to their ease of collection, high proliferative capacity, maturation potential, and paracrine function. 
  • 1.1K
  • 25 Nov 2022
Topic Review
MatriGrid® Based Biological Morphologies
A continuously rising number of literature sources claiming the similarities of 3D cell culturing to in vivo data shows the self-depicting importance of mimicking the three-dimensional microenvironment for cell culture. The MatriGrid®s, tools and techniques for the construction of a family of polycarbonate substrate scaffolds. These scaffolds are suitable not only for cell culturing but also for the manipulation and evolution of embroid bodies, for mimicking stem cell niches, or for control of the behavior of tissue slices. Some of these scaffold-based approaches use polymeric scaffolds for shaping the evolving oligocellular agglomerates. Scaffold-based approaches allow us not only to define the shape of the agglomerates but also to control biophysical and mechanical properties such as stiffness, shear stress, and nutritious flow if integrated into lab-on-a-chip devices or bioreactors.
  • 1.1K
  • 13 Jun 2022
Topic Review
3D Bioprinting for Cancer Modeling and Personalized Medicine
Tumor cells evolve in a complex and heterogeneous environment composed of different cell types and an extracellular matrix. Current 2D culture methods are very limited in their ability to mimic the cancer cell environment. Various 3D models of cancer cells have been developed, notably in the form of spheroids/organoids, using scaffold or cancer-on-chip devices. However, these models have the disadvantage of not being able to precisely control the organization of multiple cell types in complex architecture and are sometimes not very reproducible in their production, and this is especially true for spheroids. Three-dimensional bioprinting can produce complex, multi-cellular, and reproducible constructs in which the matrix composition and rigidity can be adapted locally or globally to the tumor model studied. For these reasons, 3D bioprinting seems to be the technique of choice to mimic the tumor microenvironment in vivo as closely as possible. 
  • 1.1K
  • 08 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Lung Extracellular Matrix
The lung extracellular matrix (ECM) comprises of a network of protein–protein and protein–proteoglycan interactions that modulate the biophysical environment of cells through ECM stiffness, porosity, topography and insolubility. In response, the lung ECM is remodelled by cells, whereby its components are deposited, degraded or modified in a reciprocal relationship. Changes in the ECM dynamics is associated with chronic fibrotic lung diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. 
  • 1.1K
  • 21 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Advances in Tumor Organoids
Tumor organoids are defined as self-organized three-dimensional assemblies of heterogeneous cell types derived from patient samples that mimic the key histopathological, genetic, and phenotypic characteristics of the original tumor. This technology is proposed as an ideal candidate for the evaluation of possible therapies against cancer, presenting advantages over other models which are currently used.
  • 1.1K
  • 20 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Hydrogels for Cardiac Repair and Regeneration
Cardiovascular disease (CVD), the leading cause of death globally, affects the heart and arteries with a variety of clinical manifestations, the most dramatic of which are myocardial infarction (MI), abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), and intracranial aneurysm (IA) rupture. In MI, necrosis of the myocardium, scar formation, and loss of cardiomyocytes result from insufficient blood supply due to coronary artery occlusion. Beyond stenosis, the arteries that are structurally and functionally connected to the cardiac tissue can undergo pathological dilation, i.e., aneurysmal dilation, with high risk of rupture. Aneurysms of the intracranial arteries (IAs) are more commonly seen in young adults, whereas those of the abdominal aorta (AAA) are predominantly seen in the elderly. IAs, unpredictably, can undergo rupture and cause life-threatening hemorrhage, while AAAs can result in rupture, internal bleeding and high mortality rate. In this clinical context, hydrogels, three-dimensional networks of water-seizing polymers, have emerged as promising biomaterials for cardiovascular tissue repair or protection due to their biocompatibility, tunable properties, and ability to encapsulate and release bioactive molecules.
  • 1.1K
  • 27 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Electrospinning in Liver Tissue Engineering
The major goal of liver tissue engineering is to reproduce the phenotype and functions of liver cells, especially primary hepatocytes ex vivo. Several strategies have been explored in the recent past for culturing the liver cells in the most apt environment using biological scaffolds supporting hepatocyte growth and differentiation. Nanofibrous scaffolds have been widely used in the field of tissue engineering for their increased surface-to-volume ratio and increased porosity, and their close resemblance with the native tissue extracellular matrix (ECM) environment. Electrospinning is one of the most preferred techniques to produce nanofiber scaffolds. The various technical aspects of electrospinning that have been employed for scaffold development for different types of liver cells were discussed. The use of synthetic and natural electrospun polymers along with liver ECM in the fabrication of these scaffolds was highlighted. Novel strategies that include modifications, such as galactosylation, matrix protein incorporation, etc., in the electrospun scaffolds that have evolved to support the long-term growth and viability of the primary hepatocytes were also described .
  • 1.1K
  • 14 Nov 2022
Topic Review
The Glymphatic System and Neuropathologies
The lack of a conventional lymphatic system that permeates throughout the entire human brain has encouraged the identification and study of alternative clearance routes within the cerebrum. In 2012, the concept of the glymphatic system, a perivascular network that fluidically connects the cerebrospinal fluid to the lymphatic vessels within the meninges via the interstitium, emerged. Although its exact mode of action has not yet been fully characterized, the key underlying processes that govern solute transport and waste clearance have been identified. 
  • 1.1K
  • 02 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Human Cell and Organoid Models
Metabolic (dysfunction) associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is one of the most prevalent liver diseases and has no approved therapeutics. The high failure rates witnessed in late-phase MAFLD drug trials reflect the complexity of the disease, and how the disease develops and progresses remains to be fully understood. In vitro, human disease models play a pivotal role in mechanistic studies to unravel novel disease drivers and in drug testing studies to evaluate human-specific responses.
  • 1.1K
  • 25 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Current Regenerative Medicine Approaches: Three-Dimensional Culture Systems
Three-dimensional (3D) culture systems opened up new horizons in the emerging field of regenerative medicine and in studying the biology of tissues and organs, modelling various diseases, and screening drugs. Producing accurate in vitro models increases the possibilities for studying molecular control of cell–cell and cell–microenvironment interactions in detail. The Notch signalling is linked to cell fate determination, tissue definition, and maintenance in both physiological and pathological conditions. Hence, 3D cultures provide new accessible platforms for studying activation and modulation of the Notch pathway.
  • 1.1K
  • 02 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Biodegradable Microparticles for Regenerative Medicine
Regenerative medicine is one of the most attractive topics of research worldwide. Different strategies are proposed, and a range of materials of various forms and compositions tailored for tissue engineering are developed, but this approach just started to emerge in clinics. Biodegradable microparticles (MPs) made from degradable and biocompatible polymers, with a mean diameter of ~200 μm, are attractive not only as 3D matrices to multiply cells but also as a scaffold to support tissue rebuilding.
  • 1.1K
  • 19 Apr 2022
Topic Review
The Androgen Axis in CRPC
Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying prostate cancer (PCa) progression towards its most aggressive, castration-resistant (CRPC) stage is urgently needed to improve the therapeutic options for this almost incurable pathology. Interestingly, CRPC is known to be characterized by a peculiar hormonal landscape. It is now well established that the androgen/androgen receptor (AR) axis is still active in CRPC cells. The persistent activity of this axis in PCa progression has been shown to be related to different mechanisms, such as: intratumoral androgen synthesis, AR amplification and mutations, AR mRNA alternative splicing, increased expression/activity of AR-related transcription factors and coregulators. A deeper clarification of the expression and activities of the androgen/AR axis in the CRPC stage will likely lead to the identification of novel predictive biomarkers as well as to the improvement of the therapeutical options for this almost untreatable disease, in terms of precision medicine.
  • 1.1K
  • 18 Sep 2021
Topic Review
Spermatophyte Sesquiterpene Synthases
Sesquiterpenes are important defense and signal molecules for plants to adapt to the environment, cope with stress, and communicate with the outside world, and their evolutionary history is closely related to physiological functions. In this study, the information of plant sesquiterpene synthases (STSs) with identified functions were collected and sorted to form a dataset containing about 500 members. The phylogeny of spermatophyte functional STSs was constructed based on the structural comparative analysis to reveal the sequence–structure–function relationships. We propose the evolutionary history of plant sesquiterpene skeletons, from chain structure to small rings, followed by large rings for the first time and put forward a more detailed function-driven hypothesis. Then, the evolutionary origins and history of spermatophyte STSs are also discussed. In addition, three newly identified STSs CaSTS2, CaSTS3, and CaSTS4 were analyzed in this functional evolutionary system, and their germacrene D products were consistent with the functional prediction. This demonstrates an application of the structure-based phylogeny in predicting STS function. 
  • 1.1K
  • 10 Aug 2021
Topic Review
AIE Material Design Strategy Based on Functional Groups
The common fluorescent conjugated materials present weak or quenching luminescent phenomena in the solid or aggregate state (ACQ), which limits their applications in medicine and biology. Certain materials, named aggregation-induced emission (AIE) fluorescent materials, have exhibited strong luminescent properties in the aggregate state, which can overcome the ACQ phenomenon. Due to their intrinsic properties, the AIE materials have been successfully used in biolabeling, where they can not only detect the species of ions and their concentrations in organisms, but can also monitor the organisms’ physiological activity. In addition, these kinds of materials often present non-biological toxicity. Thus, AIE materials have become some of the most popular biofluorescent probe materials and are attracting more and more attention. 
  • 1.1K
  • 08 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Exosomesas as a Therapeutic Tool
Exosomes are naturally occurring nanoscale vesicles that are released and received by almost all cells in the body. Exosomes can be transferred between cells and contain various molecular constitutes closely related to their origin and function, including proteins, lipids, and RNAs. The importance of exosomes in cellular communication makes them important vectors for delivering a variety of drugs throughout the body.
  • 1.1K
  • 23 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Gene Editing in Pluripotent Stem Cells
Gene editing in human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), including embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), is highly relevant to clinical cell therapy and thus should be examined with particular caution. First, since all mutations in PSCs will be carried to all their progenies, off-target edits of editors will be amplified. Second, due to the hypersensitivity of PSCs to DNA damage, double-strand breaks (DSBs) made by gene editing could lead to low editing efficiency and the enrichment of cell populations with defective genomic safeguards. In this regard, DSB-independent gene editing tools, such as base editors and prime editors, are favored due to their nature to avoid these consequences. With more understanding of the microbial world, new systems, such as Cas-related nucleases, transposons, and recombinases, are also expanding the toolbox for gene editing.
  • 1.1K
  • 25 Aug 2023
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