Photocrosslinkable polyaspartamide/polylactide copolymer and its porous scaffolds for chondrocytes

With the aim to produce, by a simple and reproducible technique, porous scaffolds potentially employable for tissue engineering purposes, in this work, we have synthesized a methacrylate (MA) copolymer of \u3b1,\u3b2-poly(N-2-hydroxyethyl)-DL-aspartamide (PHEA) and polylactic acid (PLA). PHEA-PLA-MA has been dissolved in organic solvent at different concentrations in the presence of NaCl particles with different granulometry, and through UV irradiation and further salt leaching technique, various porous scaffolds have been prepared. Obtained samples have been characterized by scanning electron microscopy and their porosity has been evaluated as well as their degradation profile in aqueous medium in the absence or in the presence of esterase from porcine liver. PHEA-PLA-MA scaffold that has shown homogeneous porosity and the best degradation profile has been further characterized to study its mechanical properties along with its capacity to incorporate and to control the release of dexamethasone. Finally, the ability to allow a three-dimensional culture of bovine articular chondrocytes have been also investigate

Editorial - A tailored approach in geriatric oncology: turning a problem into an opportunity for the elderly

No abstract availabl

Developing double-crosslinking 3D printed hydrogels for bone tissue engineering

Bone defects are one of the main causes of disability worldwide. Due to the disadvantages associated with autografts, the latest advances have been focused on tissue regeneration approaches that use injectable hydrogels or 3D printed hydrogel-based structures that could refill appropriately the bone gap area without the need for external fixatives, leading to bone formation in the long term. Injectable hydrogels could be applied in extrusion-based 3D printing as inks; in this sense, double-crosslinking hydrogels appear as ideal candidates. In this work, injectable and printable double crosslinkable hydrogels based on oxidized xanthan gum (XGox) and methacrylate polyaspartylhydrazide (PAHy-MA) were produced. The formation of dynamic hydrazone bonds, occurring between aldehyde groups on the polysaccharide backbone and hydrazine moieties of PAHy-MA, induced an instant gelation, conferring, also, injectability and self-healing properties to the hydrogels. The presence of methacrylic moieties on the synthetic polymer allowed further crosslinking upon UV irradiation that stabilized the hydrogel shape and mitigated its susceptibility to hydrolytic degradation. Obtained hydrogels showed pseudoplastic behaviour and good recovery of viscoelastic properties over time. The physicochemical and rheological characterization highlighted increased stability and higher viscoelastic moduli after photo-crosslinking. The hydrogels also showed good printability, cytocompatibility and the early formation of a bone-like matrix when osteosarcoma-derived cells (MG-63) were cultured in the scaffolds for 21 days, with an increased collagen I deposition, mineralization and the expression of characteristic osteogenic markers

Role of perfusion CT in the evaluation of metastatic nodal tumor response after radiochemotherapy in head and neck cancer: preliminary findings

OBJECTIVE: To assess changes of CT perfusion parameters (ΔPCTp) of cervical lymph node metastases from head and neck cancer (HNC) before and after radiochemotherapy (RT-CT) and their association with nodal tumor persistence. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Eligibility criteria included HNC (Stage III-IV) candidates for RT-CT. Patients underwent perfusion CT (PCT) at baseline 3 weeks and 3 months after RT-CT. Blood volume (BV), blood flow (BF), mean transit time (MTT) and permeability surface (PS) were calculated. PET/CT examination was also performed at baseline and 3 months after treatment for metabolic assessment. RESULTS: Between July 2012 and May 2016, 27 patients were evaluated. Overall, only 3 patients (11%) experienced tumor persistence in the largest metastatic lymph node. A significant reduction of all PCTp values (p<0.0001), except MTT (from 6.3 to 5.7 s; p=0.089), was observed at 3 weeks post-RT-CT compared to baseline. All PCTp values including MTT were significantly lower at 3-month follow-up compared to baseline (p<0.05). Moreover, a statistical significant association was observed between nodal tumor persistence and high BF values (p=0.045) at 3 months after treatment that did not occur for the other parameters. CONCLUSIONS: Our preliminary findings show that all PCTp except MTT are significantly reduced after RT-CT. High BF values at 3 months post-RTCT are predictive of nodal tumor persistence

Multimodal approach of advanced gastric cancer: Based therapeutic algorithm

Gastric cancer (GC) is the third leading cause of cancer death in both sexes worldwide, with the highest estimated mortality rates in Eastern Asia and the lowest in Northern America. However, the availability of modern treatment has improved the survival and the prognosis is often poor due to biological characteristics of the disease. In oncology, we are living in the "Era" of target treatment and, to know biological aspects, prognostic factors and predictive response informations to therapy in GC is mandatory to apply the best strategy of treatment. The purpose of this review, according to the recently published English literature, is to summarize existing data on prognostic aspects and predictive factors to response to therapy in GC and to analyze also others therapeutic approaches (surgery and radiotherapy) in locally, locally advanced and advanced GC. Moreover, the multidisciplinary approach (chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy) can improve the prognosis of GC

Use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in cancer patients. An italian multicenter survey

INTRODUCTION: Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) include a wide range of products (herbs, vitamins, minerals, and probiotics) and medical practices, developed outside of the mainstream Western medicine. Patients with cancer are more likely to resort to CAM first or then in their disease history; the potential side effects as well as the costs of such practices are largely underestimated. PATIENTS AND METHOD: We conducted a descriptive survey in five Italian hospitals involving 468 patients with different malignancies. The survey consisted of a forty-two question questionnaire, patients were eligible if they were Italian-speaking and receiving an anticancer treatment at the time of the survey or had received an anticancer treatment no more than three years before participating in the survey. RESULTS: Of our patients, 48.9% said they use or have recently used CAM. The univariate analysis showed that female gender, high education, receiving treatment in a highly specialized institute and receiving chemotherapy are associated with CAM use; at the multivariate analysis high education (Odds Ratio, (OR): 1.96 95% Confidence Interval, CI, 1.27-3.05) and receiving treatment in a specialized cancer center (OR: 2.75 95% CI, 1.53-4.94) were confirmed as risk factors for CAM use. CONCLUSION: Roughly half of our patients receiving treatment for cancer use CAM. It is necessary that health professional explore the use of CAM with their cancer patients, educate them about potentially beneficial therapies in light of the limited available evidence of effectiveness, and work towards an integrated model of health-care provision

Modulating the release of bioactive molecules of human mesenchymal stromal cell secretome: Heparinization of hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels

An amine derivative of hyaluronic acid (HA) was crosslinked to obtain a 3D dried sponge. The sponge was subsequently rehydrated using secretome from human mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), resulting in the formation of a hydrogel. The release kinetics analysis demonstrated that the hydrogel effectively sustained secretome release, with 70% of the initially loaded wound-healing-associated cytokines being released over a 12-day period. Tuning the hydrogel properties through heparin crosslinking resulted in a biomaterial with a distinct mechanism of action. Specifically, the presence of heparin enhanced water uptake capacity of the hydrogel and increased its sensitivity to enzymatic degradation. Notably, the heparin crosslinking also led to a significant retention of cytokines within the hydrogel matrix. Overall, the secretome-rehydrated HA hydrogel holds promise as a versatile device for regenerative medicine applications: the non-heparinized hydrogel may function as a biomaterial with low reabsorption rates, sustaining the release of bioactive molecules contained in MSC secretome. In contrast, the heparinized hydrogel may serve as a depot of bioactive molecules with faster reabsorption rates. Given its patch-like characteristic, the HA-based hydrogel appears suitable as topical treatment for external organs, such as the skin

A Fibrillar Biodegradable Scaffold for Blood Vessels Tissue Engineering

In recent years there has been a growing interest for the development of tubular scaffolds employed to assist the replacement of small blood vessels. Materials designed for this purpose need to be biodegradable, have good mechanical properties and improve cell adhesion, proliferation and differentiation. To obtain biomaterials with these properties, electrospinning seems to be one of the most useful technique. Several biodegradable synthetic polymers or constituents of the extracellular matrix (ECM) have been electrospun showing optimal mechanical properties and biodegradability. However, such polymers are lacking in versatile chemical structure affordable to immobilize growth factors or chemokines. The glycosaminoglycan heparin is able to bind several growth factors like vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and, when grafted onto the scaffold surface it is able to attract cells thus improving their proliferation and differentiation. Aim of this research was the production and the preliminary in vitro biological characterization of a new biodegradable material, obtained by electrospun a polyaminoacid-graft-polyester copolymer. The electrospun biomaterial has been successfully grafted with heparin exploiting the better chemical reactivity of the polyaminoacid portions of the graft copolymer. Then its morphology has been investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and the potential biodegradability of the material has been studied until 60 days. Preliminary biological data in vitro, on human endothelial cells, show a good compatibility of the scaffold obtained by electrospinning, with regard to cell adhesion and proliferation. Experiments are in progress to evaluate the effects of heparin on cell differentiation

Pericardiectomy for constrictive pericarditis: a risk factor analysis for early and late failure

Predictors of early and late failure of pericardiectomy for constrictive pericarditis (CP) have not been established. Early and late outcomes of a cumulative series of 81 (mean age 60\ua0years; mean EuroSCORE II, 3.3%) consecutive patients from three European cardiac surgery centers were reviewed. Predictors of a combined endpoint comprising in-hospital death or major complications (including multiple transfusion) were identified with binary logistic regression. Non-parametric estimates of survival were obtained with the Kaplan\u2013Meier method. Predictors of poor late outcomes were established using Cox proportional hazard regression. There were 4 (4.9%) in-hospital deaths. Preoperative central venous pressure > 15\ua0mmHg (p = 0.005) and the use of cardiopulmonary bypass (p = 0.016) were independent predictors of complicated in-hospital course, which occurred in 29 (35.8%) patients. During follow-up (median, 5.4\ua0years), preoperative renal impairment was a predictor of all-cause death (p = 0.0041), cardiac death (p = 0.0008), as well as hospital readmission due to congestive heart failure (p = 0.0037); while partial pericardiectomy predicted all-cause death (p = 0.028) and concomitant cardiac operation predicted cardiac death (p = 0.026), postoperative central venous pressure < 10\ua0mmHg was associated with a low risk both of all-cause and cardiac death (p < 0.0001 for both). Ten-year adjusted survival free of all-cause death, cardiac death, and hospital readmission were 76.9%, 94.7%, and 90.6%, respectively. In high-risk patients with CP, performing pericardiectomy before severe constriction develops and avoiding cardiopulmonary bypass (when possible) could contribute to improving immediate outcomes post-surgery. Complete removal of cardiac constriction could enhance long-term outcomes