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Summary: Infectious endophthalmitis is a growing concern that causes irreversible intraocular tissue and optic nerve damage. Here, we report a theranostic nanoplatform based on UiO-66-NH2 to combine photodynamic therapy (PDT) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) targeting through polypeptide (YVLWKRKRKFCFI-NH2) modification. Toluidine blue (TB), serving as a photosensitizer (PS), is loaded into UiO-66-NH2 nanoparticles (NPs) for both self-imaging and PDT functions. The accelerated TB release at pH 5.5 compared to pH 7.4 demonstrates the responsive drug release feature. In vitro antibacterial tests, including contact incubation-agar plate counting, bacterial live/dead staining, and scanning electron microscopy observations, confirm the utility of the TB@UiO-66-NH2@PEP&PEG NPs (UTPP NPs) in biofilms removal and sterilization of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus epidermidis. Furthermore, the UTPP NPs also show good biocompatibility toward human retinal pigment epithelial cells, as well as in situ self-imaging property. Finally, an in vivo infectious endophthalmitis model supports the application of the UTPP NPs in infectious endophthalmitis treatment.

This article aims to describe the study carried out of the acquis of contemporary medals of the Volte Face-Contemporary Medal, the former research unit of the Research and Studies Centre in Fine Arts (CIEBA) at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon. They researched on the history of the Volte Face – Contemporary Medalsgroup and the experimental work developed in the study of medallic art. This experimental path led to the appearance of medals with different shapes and sizes, craft in materials of different origins, namely organic (wood, honeycombs, parts of animals), synthetic (plastic, acrylic, wood panels) and inorganic (ceramic and metal), whose characteristics have revealed themselves as a challenge for the acquis conservation and packaging. / El presente artículo tiene como objetivo describir el estudio realizado en el acervo de las medallas contemporáneas de Volte Face - Medalha Contemporânea, antigua unidad de investigación del Centro de Investigación y Estudios de Bellas Artes (CIEBA) de la Facultad de Bellas Artes de la Universidad de Lisboa. Se ha realizado una investigación sobre la historia del Volte Face - Medalha Contemporânea y del trabajo experimental desarrollado en el área de las medallas. Esta vía de trabajo experimental condujo a la aparición de medallas de diferentes formas y tamaños, realizadas en materiales de diferentes orígenes, tanto orgánicos (madera, panales, partes de animales), como sintéticos (plásticos, acrílicos, derivados de la madera) e inorgánicos (cerámica y metal), cuyas características se han revelado como un desafío para la conservación y acondicionamiento del acervo.

The increased demands of small-diameter vascular grafts (SDVGs) globally has forced the scientific society to explore alternative strategies utilizing the tissue engineering approaches. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) comprises one of the most lethal groups of non-communicable disorders worldwide. It has been estimated that in Europe, the healthcare cost for the administration of CVD is more than 169 billion €. Common manifestations involve the narrowing or occlusion of blood vessels. The replacement of damaged vessels with autologous grafts represents one of the applied therapeutic approaches in CVD. However, significant drawbacks are accompanying the above procedure; therefore, the exploration of alternative vessel sources must be performed. Engineered SDVGs can be produced through the utilization of non-degradable/degradable and naturally derived materials. Decellularized vessels represent also an alternative valuable source for the development of SDVGs. In this review, a great number of SDVG engineering approaches will be highlighted. Importantly, the state-of-the-art methodologies, which are currently employed, will be comprehensively presented. A discussion summarizing the key marks and the future perspectives of SDVG engineering will be included in this review. Taking into consideration the increased number of patients with CVD, SDVG engineering may assist significantly in cardiovascular reconstructive surgery and, therefore, the overall improvement of patients’ life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Rotator cuff injury is the main cause of shoulder dysfunction in adults. The rate of retear is very high in patients with rotator cuff tear treated with simple surgical suture. Biological materials can optimize the biomechanical property after rotator cuff injury.OBJECTIVE: To review the latest research and clinical application of biomaterials in the repair of rotator cuff injury. METHODS: PubMed and Web of science databases were retrieved for the latest researches on the biomaterials for repair of rotator cuff. The search terms were "rotator cuff injuries; biological materials; autograft; extracellular matrix materials; synthetic materials; biological scaffold; biological patch; augmentation". Fifty-seven articles were classified and compared to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of various repair biomaterials. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Currently, the biomaterials for repair of rotator cuff injury can be divided into three categories: untreated human tissue transplantation materials, extracellular matrix materials and synthetic materials. The latest clinical reports show that untreated human tissue transplantation materials often have different clinical effects. The results of extracellular matrix materials derived from human allogenic dermal materials are still acceptable. Most scholars do not recommend the use of small intestinal submucosal grafts from pigs. The latest three-dimensional collagen scaffolds and synthetic absorbable materials have good application prospects due to their good porosity and the ability to induce the healing of tendon and bone tissues. However, most of them are still in the stage of animal experiments, and more clinical trials are needed to confirm their safety and effectiveness. There is no safe and effective biomaterial to treat rotator cuff tear. With the development of tissue engineering technology and materials science, it is expected to find a satisfactory material in the future by combining the macroscopic properties of biological scaffolds or synthetic materials with the microscopic properties of stem cells or cytokines [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recognition of oligosaccharides is associated with very limited specificity due to their strong solvation in water and the high degree of subtle structural variations between them. Here, oligosaccharide recognition sites are created on material surfaces with unmatched, binary on–off binding behavior, sharply discriminating a target oligosaccharide over closely related carbohydrate structures. The basis for the superselective binding behavior relies on the highly efficient generation of a pure, high order complex of the oligosaccharide target with synthetic carbohydrate receptor sites, in which the spatial arrangement of the multiple receptors in the complex is preserved upon material surface incorporation. The synthetic binding scaffolds can easily be tailored to recognize different oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates, opening up a realm of possibilities for their use in a wide field of applications, ranging from life sciences to diagnostics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using only precursors commonly available in the environment at ambient temperatures evolution has developed materials with complexity and properties which today’s engineers can only dream of producing. When examining biological hard materials the inclination is to compare the mechanical properties of biological materials with man made materials and to say man made materials are superior in some ways they are. Biology has never come up with materials as hard as silicon carbide, or as strong as steel, but to make these comparisons is to severely misunderstand the materials present in the natural world. The hard materials biology has produced, each of which while not hard by engineering standards, is incredibly complex and performs its role within the organism better than any synthetic material ever could.

Wounds have become one of the causes of death worldwide. The metabolic disorder of the wound microenvironment can lead to a series of serious symptoms, especially chronic wounds that bring great pain to patients, and there is currently no effective and widely used wound dressing. Therefore, it is important to develop new multifunctional wound dressings. Hydrogel is an ideal dressing candidate because of its 3D structure, good permeability, excellent biocompatibility, and ability to provide a moist environment for wound repair, which overcomes the shortcomings of traditional dressings. This article first briefly introduces the skin wound healing process, then the preparation methods of hydrogel dressings and the characteristics of hydrogel wound dressings made of natural biomaterials and synthetic materials are introduced. Finally, the development prospects and challenges of hydrogel wound dressings are discussed.

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