Plant-derived nanovesicles: harnessing nature's power for tissue protection and repair.

Tissue damage and aging lead to dysfunction, disfigurement, and trauma, posing significant global challenges. Creating a regenerative microenvironment to resist external stimuli and induce stem cell differentiation is essential. Plant-derived nanovesicles (PDNVs) are naturally bioactive lipid bilayer nanovesicles that contain proteins, lipids, ribonucleic acid, and metabolites. They have shown potential in promoting cell growth, migration, and differentiation into various types of tissues. With immunomodulatory, microbiota regulatory, antioxidant, and anti-aging bioactivities, PDNVs are valuable in resisting external stimuli and facilitating tissue repair. The unique structure of PDNVs provides an optimal platform for drug encapsulation, and surface modifications enhance their stability and specificity. Moreover, by employing synergistic administration strategies, PDNVs can maximize their therapeutic potential. This review summarized the progress and prospects of PDNVs as regenerative tools, provided insights into their selection for repair activities based on existing studies, considered the key challenge for clinical application, and anticipated their continued prominent role in the field of biomedicine.

Modifiable risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease and mortality in China: a PURE substudy.

AIMS: To examine the incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality in China and in key subpopulations, and to estimate the population-level risks attributable to 12 common modifiable risk factors for each outcome. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this prospective cohort of 47 262 middle-aged participants from 115 urban and rural communities in 12 provinces of China, it was examined how CVD incidence and mortality rates varied by sex, by urban-rural area, and by region. In participants without prior CVD, population-attributable fractions (PAFs) for CVD and for death related to 12 common modifiable risk factors were assessed: four metabolic risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, abdominal obesity, and lipids), four behavioural risk factors (tobacco, alcohol, diet quality, and physical activity), education, depression, grip strength, and household air pollution. The mean age of the cohort was 51.1 years. 58.2% were female, 49.2% were from urban areas, and 59.6% were from the eastern region of China. The median follow-up duration was 11.9 years. The CVD was the leading cause of death in China (36%). The rates of CVD and death were 8.35 and 5.33 per 1000 person-years, respectively, with higher rates in men compared with women and in rural compared with urban areas. Death rates were higher in the central and western regions of China compared with the eastern region. The modifiable risk factors studied collectively contributed to 59% of the PAF for CVD and 56% of the PAF for death in China. Metabolic risk factors accounted for the largest proportion of CVD (PAF of 41.7%), and hypertension was the most important risk factor (25.0%), followed by low education (10.2%), high non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (7.8%), and abdominal obesity (6.9%). The largest risk factors for death were hypertension (10.8%), low education (10.5%), poor diet (8.3%), tobacco use (7.5%), and household air pollution (6.1%). CONCLUSION: Both CVD and mortality are higher in men compared with women, and in rural compared with urban areas. Large reductions in CVD could potentially be achieved by controlling metabolic risk factors and improving education. Lowering mortality rates will require strategies addressing a broader range of risk factors.

Comparative analysis of the surface properties and corrosion resistance of Co-Cr dental alloys fabricated by different methods.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS: The complex oral environment leads to the corrosion of dental alloy materials and the release of metal ions that may have a negative impact on health. Digital manufacturing is increasingly being used in dentistry, but whether digitally manufactured prostheses have better resistance to corrosion than traditional cast prostheses is unclear. PURPOSE: The purpose of this in vitro study was to determine the surface properties and corrosion resistance of dental cobalt-chromium (Co-Cr) alloys fabricated by lost-wax casting (CAST), selective laser melting (SLM), and computer numerical control milling (CNC). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The surface characteristics of the specimens were analyzed via scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), metallurgical observation, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). For corrosion resistance, the specimens were immersed in artificial saliva at a pH 2.3 and 6.8 for 1, 4, and 7 weeks. Then, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to detect the main metal ion. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was conducted based on a 3-electrode system to assess the electrochemical corrosion resistance. An ANOVA test was used to evaluate statistically significant differences among the groups (α=.05). RESULTS: The SLM and CNC specimens showed more homogenous microstructures, less ion release at different times and pH, and more charge transfer resistance than CAST specimens. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with casting, SLM-printing and CNC-milling have advantages in terms of surface properties and corrosion resistance.

GL13K-modified titanium regulates osteogenic differentiation via the NF-κB pathway.

The osteoimmune response plays a crucial regulatory role in the osseointegration of dental implants. Previous studies found the antimicrobial peptide coating (GL13K) could activate the immunomodulatory potential of macrophages (Raw 264.7) and promote osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs). To further investigate the mechanism of interaction between immunomodulation and differentiation, a co-culture model of the representative cells (Raw 264.7 and BMSCs) was constructed to mimic the immune microenvironment. In this system, GL13K coating of titanium implant effectively inhibited the polarization of the inflammatory M1 type and promoted the polarization of the anti-inflammatory M2 type. Furthermore, the inhibited NF-κB signaling pathway and Mip-2 gene expression were found and validated by bioinformatics analysis and virus-induced gene silencing, which significantly affected the tissue repair process. It can be concluded that the GL13K coating had the potential to establish a localized immune microenvironment conducive to osteogenic differentiation through cellular interactions. Subsequent investigations would be dedicated to a thorough examination of the osseointegration effects of GL13K coating.

[Early visual results and mechanism of pseudo-accommodation of the Quatrix aspheric intraocular lens].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the clinical and visual outcomes of the implantation of the Quatrix intraocular lens (IOL) and investigate the mechanism of pseudo-accommodation of these lens. METHODS: Patients (67 eyes )received cataract surgery were offered the Quatrix IOL (32 eyes) and AR40e IOL (35 eyes). The patients' refractive status, uncorrected and best corrected distance visual acuities were assessed preoperatively, 1 week, 1 month and 3 months after surgery. Using the Ray-tracing method, the root mean square (RMS) values of the higher order aberrations for each subject with pupil diameters of 4.0 mm under accommodative stimuli were calculated. RESULT: The mean uncorrected distance visual acuity improved significantly from 0.70 to 0.22 logMAR by the end of 3 months postoperative for the Quatrix group. The mean uncorrected near acuity was statistically significantly higher in the Quatrix group than in the AR40e group at the 6 months post-operative examination. The internal spherical aberration increased and changed from a positive to a negative value with increasing accommodation at 4.0 mm of pupil diameter under accommodative stimuli for the Quatrix group. The total and internal high order aberrations had no significant difference after surgery in the control group. CONCLUSION: Results show that the Quatix IOL is safe, effective, and stable. It provided some degree of pseudo-accommodation. Flexure changes to the optics of the Quatrix IOL during accommodation could explain some of the pseudo-accommodation of this IOL.

Biomedical applications of chitosan/silk fibroin composites: A review.

Natural polymers have been used in the biomedical fields for decades, mainly derived from animals and plants with high similarities with biomacromolecules in the human body. As an alkaline polysaccharide, chitosan (CS) attracts much attention in tissue regeneration and drug delivery with favorable biocompatibility, biodegradation, and antibacterial activity. However, to overcome its mechanical properties and degradation behavior drawbacks, a robust fibrous protein-silk fibroin (SF) was introduced to prepare the CS/SF composites. Not only can CS be combined with SF via the amide and hydrogen bond formation, but also their functions are complementary and tunable with the blending ratio. To further improve the performances of CS/SF composites, natural (e.g., hyaluronic acid and collagen) and synthetic biopolymers (e.g., polyvinyl alcohol and hexanone) were incorporated. Also, the CS/SF composites acted as slow-release carriers for inorganic non-metals (e.g., hydroxyapatite and graphene) and metal particles (e.g., silver and magnesium), which could enhance cell functions, facilitate tissue healing, and inhibit bacterial growth. This review presents the state-of-the-art and future perspectives of different biomaterials combined with CS/SF composites as sponges, hydrogels, membranes, particles, and coatings. Emphasis is devoted to the biological potentialities of these hybrid systems, which look rather promising toward a multitude of applications.

Effect of sulfonation time on physicochemical, osteogenic, antibacterial properties and biocompatibility of carbon fiber reinforced polyether ether ketone.

The carbon fiber reinforced polyetheretherketone (CFR-PEEK) has been increasingly used in orthopedics dentistry due to its excellent biocompatibility and mechanical properties. However, the biological inertness and poor antibacterial activity limit its clinical applications. This paper focused on the performances of CFR-PEEK with porous morphology that were exposed to different sulfonation periods (1, 3, 5, and 10 min, corresponding to CP-S1, CP-S3, CP-S5, and CP-S10, respectively). Residual sulfuric acid was removed by acetone rinsing, NaOH immersion, and hydrothermal treatment before in vitro and in vivo studies. The results showed some significant difference in the physicochemical properties, including energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) map of sulfur atoms, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) of valences of sulfur ions, Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), hydrophilicity, hardness, and elastic modulus among CP-S3, CP-S5, and CP-S10. However, CP-S5 and CP-S10 were more effective in promoting the proliferation, adhesion, and osteogenic differentiation of seeded bone mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) and growth inhibition of S. aureus and P. gingivalis compared with other groups. Furthermore, the CP-S5 and CP-S10 samples achieved better cranial bone repair than the non-sulfonation group in a rat model. Therefore, it can be inferred that both 5 and 10 min are viable sulfonation durations for 30% CFR-PEEK. These findings provide a theoretical basis for developing CFR-PEEK for clinical applications.

[Comparison of optical performance and stability of five different kinds of aspheric IOLs].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the optical performance and stability of different kinds of aspheric IOLs. METHODS: It was a retrospective case series study. Five different kinds of aspheric IOLs were implanted into 130 eyes after cataract operation, including hydrophilic acrylic IOLs (AO, Bausch&Lomb), 25 eyes; hydrophilic acrylic IOLs (20H, Rayner), 20 eyes; 3-piece hydrophilic acrylic IOLs (PY60AD, HOYA), 30 eyes; acrylic IOLs (ZC, B00, AMO), 25 eyes; and 3-piece hydrophobic acrylic IOLs (Tecnis 9003, ZA9003, 30 eyes). Straylight on the retina was measured with C-quant. IOLs tilt and decentration were measured using Scheimpflug system (Pentacam, Oculus) and image-analysis was performed by Image-pro plus 6.0 software. Difference among groups was evaluated by analysis of variance (ANOVA). The relationship between straylight parameters and age, best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), inner HOA and MTF (HOA, high order aberration; MTF, Modulation Transfer Function) at different spatial frequencies was evaluated by Pearson correlation analysis. RESULTS: The mean C-quant measurements for AO, 920H, PY60AD, ZCB00 and ZA9003 groups were 1.33 ± 0.69, 1.43 ± 0.57, 1.56 ± 0.43, 1.61 ± 0.56 and 1.71 ± 0.72, respectively, which showed no statistically significant differences (F = 0.593;P = 0.669). The straylight values in AO and 920H groups were significantly lower than that of ZCB00 and ZA9003 groups (t = 2.159, 3.271 and 2.286; P = 0.045, 0.013, and 0.046). The mean IOL decentration and tilt measurements in the 5 different groups showed no statistically significant differences (F = 4.016, 3.985; P = 0.056, 0.064). CONCLUSIONS: There are no significant difference in straylight between 5 different types of aspheric IOL implanted within the lens capsules. All of them show satisfy stability. One-piece design and hydrophilic material IOLs provide better optical performance than that of 3-piece 2-point haptic design.

A novel visible light-curing chitosan-based hydrogel membrane for guided tissue regeneration.

Inflammation and trauma destroy the tooth-supporting tissue, leading to the loss of oral function and the difficulty of denture restoration. Guided tissue regeneration (GTR) is a technique based on a barrier membrane designed to restrict soft tissue invasion and maintain the space for bone regeneration. This study examined a new formulation to prepare methacrylated carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS-MA) hydrogel as a barrier membrane that could be crosslinked under visible-light irradiation. This new CMCS-MA hydrogel showed fast light-curing, good biocompatibility, and could be degraded by lysozyme. Further, the physicochemical property, cytotoxicity and antibacterial activity of the CMCS-MA hydrogels can be adjusted by varying the degree of substitution of methacrylic acid (DS) in a certain range. Thus, the biocompatible and biodegradable CMCS-MA hydrogels may have a promising application in periodontal tissue regeneration with convenience and flexibility.

Regulation of an Antimicrobial Peptide GL13K-Modified Titanium Surface on Osteogenesis, Osteoclastogenesis, and Angiogenesis Base on Osteoimmunology.

Creating a pro-regenerative immune microenvironment around implant biomaterial surfaces is significant to osseointegration. Immune cells, especially macrophages that participate in the osseointegration, including osteogenesis, osteoclastogenesis, and angiogenesis, should be considered when testing biomaterials. In this study, we immobilized an antimicrobial peptide GL13K with immunomodulatory properties onto a titanium surface via silanization. The modified surfaces show good biocompatibility with bone mesenchymal stromal cells (BMSCs), human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), and RAW264.7. By co-culturing BMSCs with RAW264.7, we found that the GL13K-coated titanium surfaces could promote late-stage osteogenesis as demonstrated by the upregulated expression of recombinant collagen type I alpha 1 (COL-1α1) and more extracellular matrix mineralization, while the early phase remained unchanged. The surfaces inhibited the osteoclastogenic differentiation of RAW264.7 cells by restraining nuclear factor-activated T cells, cytoplasmic 1 (NFATc1), the main factor of the receptor activator of nuclear factor-κ B, and the receptor activator of the nuclear factor-κ B ligand signaling pathway, from entering the nucleus and further reduced the expression of the activating osteoclastogenic tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase gene. Moreover, the GL13K-coated titanium surface demonstrated significant promotion of angiogenesis differentiation of HUVECs as indicated by the upregulated expression of essential angiogenesis function genes, including hypoxia-inducible factor-1α, endothelial nitric oxide synthase, kinase insert domain receptor, and vascular endothelial growth factor A (HIF-1α, eNOS, KDR, and VEGF-A). Taken together, these results demonstrated that the GL13K coating had properties of osteogenesis, angiogenesis, and anti-osteoclastogenesis via its immunomodulatory potential.

[Comparison of tilt and decentration of four different kinds of aspheric intraocular lenses implantation].

OBJECTIVE: To measure tilt and decentration of four different kinds of aspheric intraocular lenses (IOLs) with Scheimpflug imaging systems after cataract surgery. METHODS: One hundred and thirty eyes undertaken cataract surgery and IOLs implantation, including four different kinds of aspheric IOLs [1-piece hydrophilic acrylic IOLs (Akreos AO, Bausch & Lomb); 3-piece acrylic IOLs (Tecnis9003, AMO); 1-piece acrylic IOLs (SN60WF, Alcon) and 1-piece hydrophilic acrylic IOLs (920H, Rayner)] and 3-piece acrylic spherical IOLs (AR40e, AMO), were retrospectively reviewed. Tilt and decentration of IOLs were measured using Scheimpflug system (Pentacam, Oculus) and analyzed with Image-pro plus 6.0 software. RESULTS: Except tilt of AR40e group, the vertical and horizontal tilt and decentration for other groups did not differ significantly. The mean IOL tilt in AO, Z9003, IQ, 920H, AR40e was 2.08 degrees, 2.58 degrees, 1.72 degrees, 1.81 degrees, and 3.22 degrees, respectively, which showed statistically significant differences (F = 4.511, P = 0.003). The mean IOL decentration in AO, Z9003, IQ, 920H and AR40e was 0.04, 0.24, 0.25, 0.19 and 0.18 mm, respectively, which showed significant difference in vertical direction (F = 4.162, P = 0.047). The average tilt significantly correlated with amount of decentration in Z9003 IOL (r = -0.517, P = 0.034). CONCLUSION: In different types of aspheric IOL implanted within the capsule, tilt and decentration in 1-piece and 4-point haptic IOL are less than those in 3-piece and 2-point haptic IOL.

[Clinical study for postoperative visual acuity in cataract patients with the potential acuity meter].

OBJECTIVE: To study a new domestic potential acuity meter (PAM) for predicting visual acuity (PVA) in patients with cataracts and to compare the results to that measured by PAM-1000 and Lotmar. METHODS: One hundred and fifty cataract eyes were enrolled in this study. PVA was evaluated with three different dioptometers before the surgery and compared to actual best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) obtained two months after the surgery. RESULTS: PVA obtained from domestic PAM correlated well with BCVA. In 56 eyes with non-identical results between PVA and BCVA, 52 eyes were false-negative and 3 eyes were false-positive, indicating that PAM tended to underestimate postoperative BCVA. In severe cataract patients, the correlation between PVA obtained from these three dioptometers and postoperative BCVA was decreased. The identical rates (as compared with postoperative BCVA) for the results obtained from PAM-1000 and Lotmar were 64. 0% and 62. 7%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Domestic PAM is relatively reliable for predicting postoperative visual acuity. It is a valuable method in the examination of PVA before the cataract surgery.