Hollow Fiber and Nanofiber Membranes in Bioartificial Liver and Neuronal Tissue Engineering.

To date, the creation of biomimetic devices for the regeneration and repair of injured or diseased tissues and organs remains a crucial challenge in tissue engineering. Membrane technology offers advanced approaches to realize multifunctional tools with permissive environments well-controlled at molecular level for the development of functional tissues and organs. Membranes in fiber configuration with precisely controlled, tunable topography, and physical, biochemical, and mechanical cues, can direct and control the function of different kinds of cells toward the recovery from disorders and injuries. At the same time, fiber tools also provide the potential to model diseases in vitro for investigating specific biological phenomena as well as for drug testing. The purpose of this review is to present an overview of the literature concerning the development of hollow fibers and electrospun fiber membranes used in bioartificial organs, tissue engineered constructs, and in vitro bioreactors. With the aim to highlight the main biomedical applications of fiber-based systems, the first part reviews the fibers for bioartificial liver and liver tissue engineering with special attention to their multifunctional role in the long-term maintenance of specific liver functions and in driving hepatocyte differentiation. The second part reports the fiber-based systems used for neuronal tissue applications including advanced approaches for the creation of novel nerve conduits and in vitro models of brain tissue. Besides presenting recent advances and achievements, this work also delineates existing limitations and highlights emerging possibilities and future prospects in this field

Overstimulation of glutamate signaling in hamster hippocampal neurons: what’s new?

It is known that ischemic complications arise from neuronal and glial dysfunctions occurring in almost all brain areas. Within some neuronal networks, an early excitatory/inhibitory circuit imbalance tends to account for premature neuronal damages especially during the initial stages of perinatal development. Interestingly, cellular conditions reported in ischemia were also detected during the different phases of hibernation cycle and above all arousal state. Hibernating animals are able to survive under these conditions without neurological damage, so their neuronal circuits present an opportunity to investigate molecular strategies involved in mammalian cell survival under unfavorable conditions. We reported a contextual alterations of both ionotropic and metabotropic Glutamatergic systems in perinatal hippocampal neurons in response to ischemic-like condition, according to their early activation during neuronal development (Giusi et al., 2009; Di Vito et a.l, 2012). In addition, an altered expression was also reported for specific PSD scaffold proteins, which regulate Glutamate receptors targeting (Al-Hallaq et al., 2007). From our preliminary results, we can suggest that specific alterations of glutamatergic receptors, which differ significantly from those reported in other rodent, could play a major role toward the correction of neuronal development aberrations linked to clinical disorders

Membrane Bio-Artificial systems for liver and neuronal tissue engineering

Dottorato di Ricerca in Molecular Bio-Pathology, XXIII Cycle, a.a. 2009-2010Università della Calabri

Future Trends in Biomaterials and Devices for Cells and Tissues

Setting up physiologically relevant in vitro models requires realizing a proper hierarchical cellular structure, wherein the main tissue features are recapitulated [...

Anticancer Effects of Plasma-Treated Water Solutions from Clinically Approved Infusion Liquids Supplemented with Organic Molecules

Water solutions treated by cold atmospheric plasmas (CAPs)currently stand out in the field of cancer treatment as sources of exogenous blendsof reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS). It is well known that the balanceof RONS inside both eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells is directly involved inphysiological as well as pathological pathways. Also, organic molecules includingphenols could exert promising anticancer effects, mostly attributed to their pro-oxidant ability in vitro and in vivo to generate RONS like O2−, H2O2, and amixture of potentially cytotoxic compounds. By our vision of combining theefficacy of plasma-produced RONS and the use of organic molecules, we could synergistically attack cancer cells; yet, so far, thiscombination, to the best of our knowledge, has been completely unexplored. In this study,L-tyrosine, an amino acid with a phenolicside chain, is added to a physiological solution, often used in clinical practice (SIII) to be exposed to plasma. The efficacy of the gasplasma-oxidized SIII solution, containing tyrosine, was evaluated on four cancer cell lines selected from among tumors with poorprognosis (SHSY-5Y, MCF-7, HT-29, and SW-480). The aim was to induce tumor toxicity and trigger apoptosis pathways. Theresults clearly indicate that the plasma-treated water solution (PTWS) reduced cell viability and oxygen uptake due to an increase inintracellular ROS levels and activation of apoptosis pathways in all investigated cancer cells, which may be related to the activation ofthe mitochondrial-mediated and p-JNK/caspase-3 signaling pathways. This research offers improved knowledge about thephysiological mechanisms underlying cancer treatment and a valid method to set up a prompt, adequate, and effective cancertreatment in the clinic

Surgeons' perspectives on artificial intelligence to support clinical decision-making in trauma and emergency contexts: results from an international survey

Background: Artificial intelligence (AI) is gaining traction in medicine and surgery. AI-based applications can offer tools to examine high-volume data to inform predictive analytics that supports complex decision-making processes. Time-sensitive trauma and emergency contexts are often challenging. The study aims to investigate trauma and emergency surgeons' knowledge and perception of using AI-based tools in clinical decision-making processes. Methods: An online survey grounded on literature regarding AI-enabled surgical decision-making aids was created by a multidisciplinary committee and endorsed by the World Society of Emergency Surgery (WSES). The survey was advertised to 917 WSES members through the society's website and Twitter profile. Results: 650 surgeons from 71 countries in five continents participated in the survey. Results depict the presence of technology enthusiasts and skeptics and surgeons' preference toward more classical decision-making aids like clinical guidelines, traditional training, and the support of their multidisciplinary colleagues. A lack of knowledge about several AI-related aspects emerges and is associated with mistrust. Discussion: The trauma and emergency surgical community is divided into those who firmly believe in the potential of AI and those who do not understand or trust AI-enabled surgical decision-making aids. Academic societies and surgical training programs should promote a foundational, working knowledge of clinical AI

Time for a paradigm shift in shared decision-making in trauma and emergency surgery? Results from an international survey

Background Shared decision-making (SDM) between clinicians and patients is one of the pillars of the modern patient-centric philosophy of care. This study aims to explore SDM in the discipline of trauma and emergency surgery, investigating its interpretation as well as the barriers and facilitators for its implementation among surgeons. Methods Grounding on the literature on the topics of the understanding, barriers, and facilitators of SDM in trauma and emergency surgery, a survey was created by a multidisciplinary committee and endorsed by the World Society of Emergency Surgery (WSES). The survey was sent to all 917 WSES members, advertised through the society’s website, and shared on the society’s Twitter profile. Results A total of 650 trauma and emergency surgeons from 71 countries in five continents participated in the initiative. Less than half of the surgeons understood SDM, and 30% still saw the value in exclusively engaging multidisciplinary provider teams without involving the patient. Several barriers to effectively partnering with the patient in the decision-making process were identified, such as the lack of time and the need to concentrate on making medical teams work smoothly. Discussion Our investigation underlines how only a minority of trauma and emergency surgeons understand SDM, and perhaps, the value of SDM is not fully accepted in trauma and emergency situations. The inclusion of SDM practices in clinical guidelines may represent the most feasible and advocated solutions