Biological scaffold as potential platforms for stem cells: Current development and applications in wound healing.

Wound repair is a complex challenge for both clinical practitioners and researchers. Conventional approaches for wound repair have several limitations. Stem cell-based therapy has emerged as a novel strategy to address this issue, exhibiting significant potential for enhancing wound healing rates, improving wound quality, and promoting skin regeneration. However, the use of stem cells in skin regeneration presents several challenges. Recently, stem cells and biomaterials have been identified as crucial components of the wound-healing process. Combination therapy involving the development of biocompatible scaffolds, accompanying cells, multiple biological factors, and structures resembling the natural extracellular matrix (ECM) has gained considerable attention. Biological scaffolds encompass a range of biomaterials that serve as platforms for seeding stem cells, providing them with an environment conducive to growth, similar to that of the ECM. These scaffolds facilitate the delivery and application of stem cells for tissue regeneration and wound healing. This article provides a comprehensive review of the current developments and applications of biological scaffolds for stem cells in wound healing, emphasizing their capacity to facilitate stem cell adhesion, proliferation, differentiation, and paracrine functions. Additionally, we identify the pivotal characteristics of the scaffolds that contribute to enhanced cellular activity.

Global research status of localised scleroderma reported over the period 1993-2022: A 30-year bibliometric analysis.

Localised scleroderma predominantly affects the skin with an unknown aetiology. Despite its clinical importance, no comprehensive bibliometric analysis has been conducted to assess the existing research landscape and future prospects for localised scleroderma. The articles related to localised scleroderma were retrieved from the WoSCC database and analysed by VOSviewer 1.6.10.0 (Leiden University, Netherlands), CiteSpace 6.1.R1 (Dreiser University, USA), and HistCite 2.1 (New York, United States). 2049 research papers pertaining to localised scleroderma spanning the years from 1993 to 2022 were extracted from the WoSCC database. The United States exhibited the highest productivity with 644 papers, accounting for 31.43% of the total output, followed by Germany with 206 papers (10.05%) and Italy with 200 papers (9.76%). Regarding academic institutions and journals, the University of Texas System and Dermatology published the most significant number of papers, and Professor Ihn, H emerged as the most prolific contributor among scholars. The top 10 cited references primarily concentrated on the diagnosis and treatment of localised scleroderma. "Phototherapy" and "methotrexate (MTX)" surfaced as the most recent and noteworthy keywords, representing the research hotspots in the domain of localised scleroderma. This bibliometric analysis furnishes valuable insights into the contemporary research landscape of localised scleroderma.

[Intestinal absorption characteristics of root tuber of Cynanchum auriculatum extract in normal and functional dyspepsia model rats via everted intestine sac model].

The study investigated the difference of intestinal absorption characteristics of root tuber of Cynanchum auriculatum extract between normal and functional dyspepsia(FD) model rats with everted intestine sac model.The content of syringic acid, scopoletin, caudatin, baishouwu benzophenone, qingyangshengenin and deacyhmetaplexigenin in the C.auriculatum extract in different intestinal segments was detected by UPLC-MS/MS.The cumulative absorption amount(Q) and absorption rate constant(K_a) of the six chemical constituents were calculated.The results showed that the six components could be absorbed into the intestinal sac and were unsaturated, which indicated that the absorption mechanism of scopoletin was active transport in the intestine, while that of the other five components were passive diffusion.For normal group, the syringic acid and baishouwu benzophenone in ileum, qingyangshengenin and deacyhmetaplexigenin in ileum and duodenum, and caudatin in colon were well absorbed and scopoletin at low, medium and high concentrations was found excellent absorption in jejunum, ileum, and colon, respectively.Whereas the best absorption site of each component was ileum in model group.The absorption characteristics of each component between normal group and model group were complex at different concentrations, showing inconsistent tendency of absorption, which suggested that the components of root tuber of C.auriculatum extract were selectively absorbed in small intestine, and the absorption characteristics of the six components could be changed under FD status.This study provided theoretical basis for the clinical drug application and development of root tuber of C.auriculatum.

Application of adipose-derived stem cells in treating fibrosis.

Fibrosis is the hyperactivation of fibroblasts that results in excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix, which is involved in numerous pathological changes and diseases. Adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) are promising seed cells for regenerative medicine due to their bountiful source, low immunogenicity and lack of ethical issues. Their anti-fibrosis, immunomodulation, angiogenesis and other therapeutic effects have made them suitable for treating fibrosis-related diseases. Here, we review the literature on ASCs treating fibrosis, elaborate and discuss their mechanisms of action, changes in disease environment, ways to enhance therapeutic effects, as well as current preclinical and clinical studies, in order to provide a general picture of ASCs treating fibrotic diseases.

Prognostic impact of tertiary lymphoid structures in breast cancer prognosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs), organizationally resemble lymph nodes, are frequently present in breast cancer (BCa). It is usually, but not always, associated with a positive prognosis or immunotherapy response in cancer patients. This meta-analysis was performed to assess the prognostic and clinical impact of TLSs in BCa. METHODS: We conducted a systematic search in PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and WanFang Database to obtain eligible research data up to May 30, 2021. This meta-analysis is focusing on the studies evaluated the prognostic value of TLSs and the associated clinicopathologic indicators, related gene expression and survival. STATA software 16.0 software was used to assess the prognostic significance and clinical impact of TLSs. RESULTS: Nine studies involved with 2281 cases were incorporated in this meta-analysis, in which four of them evaluated the prognostic value of TLSs. There are 6 studies assessed the relationship of TLSs and 4 studies investigated the clinicopathologic parameters as well as the key gene expression, respectively. The results showed the presence of TLSs were predicting a better OS (HR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.51-0.73, p < 0.001) and DFS (HR = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.17-0.93, p < 0.001) of BCa patients. It also revealed that the presence of TLSs was significantly correlated with tumor differentiation (p < 0.001), pTNM stage (p < 0.001), lymph node metastasis (p < 0.001), and TILs density (p < 0.001) of BCa, and the expression of Her2 (p < 0.001), ER (p < 0.001), PR (p < 0.001) and Ki67 (p = 0.009) of the tumor cell. CONCLUSION: Our results indicated that high levels of TLSs could predict a favorable prognosis for BCa. Moreover, the TLSs were significantly correlated with the clinicopathological indicators and the critical gene expression of BCa, indicating its potential clinical impact on BCa patients.

Reliability and Validity of the Chinese Version of the Lymphedema Quality of Life Questionnaire.

Objective To study the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the Lymphedema Quality of Life Questionnaire (LYMQOL) in lymphedema patients. Methods LYMQOL was translated into Chinese. The Chinese version of the LYMQOL was distributed with the official Wechat account "Lymphedema Channel" to lymphedema patients who were recruited from October 28 th, 2020 to February 23rd, 2021. Patients with upper limb lymphedema and lower limb lymphedema completed the LYMQOL-ARM subscale and the LYMQOL-LEG subscale separately, at enrollment, 1 week later, and 1 month later. Reliability, validity, feasibility, responsiveness and average time required for completing the questionnaire were assessed. Results A total of 195 patients participated in the study. The Chinese questionnaire showed high reliability with Cronbach's α coefficients of 0.849-0.902 for the LYMQOL-ARM and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.848-0.884 and Cronbach's α coefficients of 0.726-0.902 for the LYMQOL-LEG and ICC of 0.863-0.900. The LYMQOL showed moderate to good correlations with the EQ-5D (0.4

Application and prospect of adipose stem cell transplantation in treating lymphedema.

BACKGROUND: Lymphedema is a chronic, debilitating and incurable disease that affects 0.13%-2% of the global population. Emerging evidence indicates that adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) might serve as suitable seed cells for lymphatic tissue engineering and lymphedema therapy. AIM: To summarize applications of ADSCs for treating lymphedema in both animal studies and clinical trials. METHODS: A systematic search was performed on four databases - PubMed, Clinicaltrials.gov, the evidence-based Cochrane Library, and OVID - using the following search string: ("lymphedema" or "lymphoedema" or "lymphangiogenesis") and ("adipose-derived stem cells" or "adipose-derived stromal cells" or "adipose-derived regenerative cells"). A manual search was performed by skimming the references of relevant studies. Animal studies and clinical trials using adipose-derived cells for the treatment of any kind of lymphedema were included. RESULTS: A total of eight research articles published before November 2019 were included for this analysis. Five articles focused on animal studies and another three focused on clinical trials. ADSC transplantation therapy was demonstrated to be effective against lymphedema in all studies. The animal studies found that coadministration of ADSCs and controlled-release vascular endothelial growth factor-C or platelet-rich plasma could improve the effectiveness of ADSC therapy. Three sequential clinical trials were conducted on breast cancer-related lymphedema patients, and all showed favorable results. CONCLUSION: ADSC-based therapy is a promising option for treating lymphedema. Large-scale, multicenter randomized controlled trials are needed to develop more effective and durable therapeutic strategies.